


This is the Dawning of the Rest of Our Lives

by daesunki



Series: Pathcode [2]
Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - MAMA (Music Video), Aromantic Kyungsoo, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Minor Character Death, Platonic Cuddling, Platonic Kissing, Platonic Male/Male Relationships, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-14
Updated: 2016-08-23
Packaged: 2018-07-14 23:47:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 20,361
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7196243
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/daesunki/pseuds/daesunki
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After their escape from the facility they were held in for years, Baekhyun and Jongdae struggle to regroup with their friends, who are all scattered across the globe.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. pt.1

**Author's Note:**

> title taken from green days [holiday](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1OqtIqzScI&feature=youtu.be)
> 
> i originally thought up this au after baeks pathcode teaser came out, but it wasnt until after the lucky one mv came out that i actually knew how i want to go about this thing. so this is actually like, a year in the making!
> 
> this will be either a twoshot or a threeshot and i might write a short prequel describing their actual escape, but i wanna get this one done first.
> 
> i suck at summaries holy fuck

_Lyon, 6:27._

His shoes click on the marble steps as he skips them up two at a time. Everything about him screams of ease and nonchalance, his hands in the pockets of his well-worn leather jacket and the cheap earbuds shoved in his ears. Which is good, he supposes, because right now he's feeling everything _but_ calm. There's nervousness crawling under his skin, clawing at his insides and making his fingertips tingle in a way that's not quite right. As he reaches the top of the stairs and moves past the grand cathedral, Baekhyun feels truly and thoroughly sick.

Lyon is a nice city, he supposes. He didn't really have the time to check it out; it's been only a day since he crash-landed here, if the way the ink-black sky is slowly turning navy blue in preparation for the new day is any hint. It doesn't matter, though. He doesn't mean to stay here long.

_Yixing._

There's sleepy humming on the other side of the connection to his Parallel; he must be waking up, or going to sleep, depending on where he is in the world. Baekhyun briskly saunters past closed restaurants and coffee shops that are just starting to open and hopes to god that nobody finds him suspicious. There's cold sweat gathering under the stolen jacket on his back. 

Another call to his Parallel, more urgent this time. _Yixing, please._

It feels like someone whipped him in the face when Yixing's mind springs into consciousness- Baekhyun staggers with it, the buzzing of quickly processed information (an image of a small studio apartment, probably Yixing's vision being broadcasted into his mind) making him falter in his steps and hold a hand to his head. Feverishly, he hopes he looks like a drunk with a hangover to bystanders and not some wacko. 

_Hyung_ , Baekhyun pleads weakly over the rushing of his Parallel's waking mind. _Calm down. You’re hurting me._

There's a spark of disbelief and surprise at the sound of his voice, quickly overthrown by wave after wave of relief. _Baekhyun_ , Yixing thinks, soft with awe. _Baby boy._

Baekhyun smiles and resumes walking, passing the tourist-friendly front streets and entering a maze of narrow, stone-paved alleyways. Yixing always did have the tendency to be overly-affectionate when sleepy. He sends some fondness over his connection to Yixing, immediately getting some back. 

It doesn't last long. The familiarity and joy of hearing each other are quickly overshadowed by worry on Yixing's end. _Where are you? Are you okay? Are you hurt?_

 _I’m alright,_ Baekhyun assures him. Fruit bats fly in the small alley above him; he smiles. _I’m in France, I think. Lyon. You?_

 _Yunnan_ , comes the immediate reply, colored in with a bit of happiness that Baekhyun reciprocates. It must be nice for Yixing to be in his home country after so long. Distantly, Baekhyun wishes he would've landed in Korea instead. 

Maybe one of them did.

Obviously Yixing heard that thought, because he immediately latches onto it, a ripple of hope going through his consciousness and pushing into Baekhyun's, tinging his mind. _Are any of them close to you?_ asks Yixing, tentative- afraid that maybe none of the others made it. That they're the only ones who survived.

The sky is turning purple. A wave of guilt passes through Baekhyun as he ducks into yet another alley and tightens his jacket around him. _I haven’t checked yet,_ he supplies. _I was too weak._

Thank god he has such an understanding Parallel. If he had Chanyeol, or Zitao, or even Wufan as a Parallel, he's sure he would've gotten the mental equivalent of a beating. Yixing, however, is sensitive, wrapping him in a soft layer of comfort, not just for his confession, but for the loss; thinking of Zitao and Wufan still hurts, even after all this time.

 _Luhan_ , Yixing adds miserably, piercing another ice pick through Baekhyun's already bleeding heart. He didn't mean to hurt him, of course, but mentioning any of their dead friends will always make Baekhyun numb. He doesn't think it'll ever stop. He stops dead in his tracks and just pants for a few seconds, the cold early morning air cutting his lungs, before sliding down a nearby wall until he's sitting with his knees pulled to his chest and his head resting in the cover of his arms. The darkness there feels familiar for all the wrong reasons.

Yixing's mind is ashamed, timid, offering an apology. _We got out of there_ , he murmurs in reminder. _They can’t hurt us anymore_.

That sends a chill through Baekhyun; flashes of red-lined white walls, red nurses in white gowns, red blood on white skin. Running until his lungs burned. Chanyeol kissing his forehead and whispering, _Run_.

Yixing's mind flinches, ducking out of harm's way; Baekhyun's memories singe their path through both of their minds, but Yixing can shield himself from them. Baekhyun is helpless.

The lights in the alleyway flicker.

 _Baekhyun_ , Yixing tries, and Baekhyun imagines him approaching him with his hands raised good-naturedly and a careful smile tugging at his lips. _Calm down. It’s all right._

It takes a few minutes, but he does, eventually, with the help of Yixing's endless supply of calm and comforting thoughts- mental images of Junmyeon’s smile, Chanyeol’s laughter, the lingering warmth of Kyungsoo’s rare hugs. The shaking stops, and even though Baekhyun's not aware of it, the lights in the alleyway have stopped flickering, too. 

_Thank you_ , he sends over to Yixing, exhausted as he leans back against the wall behind him.

_Always._

They stay quiet for a while; Baekhyun imagines that Yixing wants to give him some time to mellow out and regain his composure, but Baekhyun himself is trying to remember what they were talking about before he lost control. He stares at the wall in front of him. It's painted a neutral shade of butter-yellow, the paint chipped and coming off at some places, stained at others. There's something strangely comforting about it.

Comfort, right. Yixing was asking if he could sense any of the others nearby. Slowly, drawing in a breath through his nose and closing his eyes, Baekhyun draws his senses in, packing them tight until they're all fused together with no air to breathe, and then he lets them _free_. 

They scatter all over the planet, bouncing off of mountaintops and dipping into valleys, splashing in the ocean. Immediately there's the familiar _ping_ of Junmyeon; he's close, close enough that Baekhyun knows for sure he's in France too. Baekhyun gets a mental image of an open field and an empty swimming pool. He's alive, then. That's a relief.

His senses bounce off of Jongin, Sehun, and Minseok as well, the first two off to the west of him, the elder to the east. Jongin's in London, and he's scared and confused. Sehun's in Edinburgh, struggling to get used to the feeling of being _alone_. Minseok, in Berlin, well-established already.

He can't gather any more than this; everyone else are too far away for his senses to detect. Baekhyun firmly refuses to acknowledge the other option. 

Yixing saw all of it as well, listening in through the connection. He's giddy with relief when Baekhyun pulls his senses back. _They’re alive._

Baekhyun allows himself a small smile. _Yes. At least we have them._

That seems to alert something within his Parallel; a flash of thought passes through their connection. Yixing is pleased, happy even, when he shares his good news. _Jongdae’s alive, too._

Baekhyun's eyes widen. His heart does somersaults in his chest.

 _I felt him in Kazakhstan before I passed out, but he’s moved beyond my senses can reach since I’ve regained consciousness_ , Yixing finishes, but Baekhyun barely registers it through the explosion of pure joy and relief clouding his mind. Jongdae is alive. _His_ Jongdae. His magnificent, brave, impossibly smart Jongdae. 

_Of course he is_ , Baekhyun mumbles, more to himself than anything. Of fucking course Jongdae's alive. There's no way he'd let himself die just when they were all so close to freedom. He'd dreamt about it, wanted it for so long, and now when he finally had the chance to get it, he wouldn't give it up for anything. Most importantly, a small voice whispers in the back of Baekhyun's head, making him blush, he wouldn't leave Baekhyun alone.

 _That’s gross_ , Yixing chirps, his voice holding no real bite to it. Baekhyun doesn't care. Yixing, as his Parallel, has had to endure hours upon endless hours of Baekhyun's sappy thoughts about their resident lightning bender, and he's become sadly accustomed to it. Kyungsoo, Jongdae's Parallel, has sullenly attested to withstanding the same treatment from Jongdae.

 _I can’t believe he’s okay_ , Baekhyun whispers, still drunk on happiness. He's still smiling like an idiot when Yixing's previous words register, making his smile turn into a frown. _Wait, he’s moved?_

Yixing's mind turns sour. _Yeah. I have no idea where. He could be anywhere in the world right now._

The back of Baekhyun's head thunks against the wall as he throws it back, looking up at the rapidly brightening sky and trying to fight the overwhelming desperation that washes over him. _He could be anywhere_ , he echos emptily. 

Yixing remains silent.

\------

Something goes terribly wrong the very next night.

Baekhyun has taken to being a night owl, sleeping while the sun is in the sky and waking up just as it sinks beyond the horizon. He does it mainly because of jetlag- Korea’s far away from France and time zones are a bitch- but also because Yixing’s awake at those hours, and it’s easier to be inside his own mind when he’s not alone in there. As long as Yixing’s awake and functioning, their connection as Parallels keeps Baekhyun company.

He leaves the homeless shelter he’s staying in sometimes around midnight and takes to the streets with no known destination. He’s just trying to work out a plan, really, and thinking is easier while he’s moving.

 _Kyungsoo would be able to tell us where everyone else is, but he’s far beyond my reach_ , Yixing muses as Baekhyun walks past crowded streets. It seems curious to him that so many people would be out and about at this hour of the night, but then again, he did spend the few last years of his life locked up in a facility deep in the secluded forests of South Korea, so he doesn’t have a clue as to how people usually live.

 _Yeah_ , he agrees absentmindedly, feeling Yixing’s disapprovement of his train of thought. _I can’t feel him either. You think he’s in America?_

Yixing hums. _Could be. Chanyeol, too._

Baekhyun ducks into a quieter street and lets out a thankful breath at the decrease in the number of people around him. He can’t help but feeling like a freak, walking around alone. Less people means less minds inspecting and judging him. 

_Did Jongdae enter your perception zone again?_ he asks Yixing, hopeful. He doesn’t even try to hide the wave of disappointment when Yixing pushes apologetic negativity towards him. _Dammit_ , he mumbles. _He could’ve helped us contact Kyungsoo._

 _You_ know _that’s not why you want to find him,_ Yixing promptly snaps. Baekhyun turns left and shoves his hands in his pockets, head bowed.

No, it’s not. 

Helpless, Baekhyun compacts his senses in preparation for the search he’s about to conduct. He can feel them coiling inside him, like a white-hot iron ball in his chest, waiting to be released. He holds them tight, relishes in the pain that means he’s alive, and then lets them go.

The lights in the street all go out at once.

In the sudden confusion that spreads around, no one notices the small Korean man clutching his head in pain, or the small cry he lets out. Baekhyun is hurting, he’s _burning_ , his senses going haywire as they lash out at every light source within a mile’s radius, blowing them all out. They spread out unbeckoned, unchecked, and Baekhyun distantly feels himself collapse against a nearby wall as his power sucks out more and more light, leaving entire neighborhoods in darkness. 

There’s a buzzing in his head that leaves him numb to the screaming and the sound of running feet all around him; it feels like there’s barbed wire in his lungs every time he takes a breath, pressing against his ribcage and threatening to break through his skin. He tries to rein in his power and fails, miserably. It’s like he can’t even control it anymore- it spreads everywhere, snakes into households and businesses, eating, _feasting_.

Within a minute, the entire city of Lyon goes dark.

His panting sounds hollow against the ringing in Baekhyun’s ears; he’s curled up into himself, head shielded in the tight circle of his arms. At least like this he can’t see what’s going around him, can’t witness the havoc he’s wreaked. What the fuck is wrong with him? What did he just do?

“Baekhyun.”

 _That voice_ , Baekhyun thinks numbly to no one in particular; Yixing’s gone, shoved out of his head since the first burst of his power. _I know that voice._

Slowly, Baekhyun lifts his head.

Jongdae smiles at him, gentle in the now-visible moonlight and in the way his eyes trace Baekhyun’s face. He’s crouched in front of him, hands placed carefully on Baekhyun’s knees, radiating warmth that’s so delicious and familiar that Baekhyun can’t deny that it’s actually _there_ , that _Jongdae’s_ there. He raises a shaky hand to cup Jongdae’s face, whimpering at how soft his skin feels under his fingertips. Jongdae leans into his touch, eyes never leaving Baekhyun’s face.

“Jongdae,” Baekhyun breathes, eyes wide with disbelief. “My Jongdae.”

The smile he gets at the endearment could light the entire city back up; in fact, Jongdae probably _could_ , what with his power being electricity and whatnot. “Hey,” he whispers back, covering the hand on his face with one of his own. “You’re okay. I’ve got you. I’m not going anywhere, babe.”

Baekhyun lets out a sob he’d later deny and springs forward to wrap his arms around Jongdae’s neck, effectively knocking the lightning bender backwards so his butt hits the pavement. The arms that wrap around him feel so safe and warm and so much like _home_ that Baekhyun melts right into them, burying his face against Jongdae’s neck, sniffling back tears. Jongdae’s stroking his back and hair, and Baekhyun shivers. “I was worried out of my mind.”

Jongdae lets out a watery laugh. “I know. That’s why I had to get to you as soon as possible.”

That switches something on in Baekhyun’s head. He pulls back just enough to look at the other, confusion making him furrow his brow. “How _did_ you get here? How did you even know where I am?” he asks accusingly, one of his hands sinking into the softness of Jongdae’s jet black hair. He could never resist it in the first place.

The lightning bender purrs at the touch, and the way the corners of his lips turn up make him look so much like a cat that Baekhyun’s brain short-circuits for a second. 

“Kyungsoo told me where you are,” Jongdae says, lifting one hand to tap at his temple smartly. “One of the benefits of having a powerful earthbender as your Parallel. After that I, uh,” he pauses, chewing on his lower lip. “I used the magnetic fields to fly over here.”

Baekhyun’s eyebrows shoot up into his hairline, as well as his admiration for Jongdae. “I didn’t know you could do that,” he marvels, cupping both of Jongdae’s cheeks and pressing a kiss to his forehead. The other blushes and shrugs. 

“You’re amazing,” Baekhyun tells him seriously, looking into the lightning bender’s eyes to let him know he means every single word. Jongdae’s gaze softens; he drags Baekhyun down by the back of his head until their foreheads are touching, and he looks at him like he’s the most important thing in the world. 

When their lips seal together, the entire city lights up.


	2. pt.2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> soon ull all see just how trash i am for platonic chensoo

“We need to go to London,” Jongdae declares an hour later on the thin mattress the homeless shelter supplied to Baekhyun, arms still hooked firmly around his boyfriend’s waist. “Pick Jongin up, and continue from there.”

After their emotional reunion out on the streets of Lyon, Baekhyun lead Jongdae back to his temporary home so they can have a bit of privacy as they shared the information they had and thought up a plan. While Baekhyun himself barely knew enough English to communicate (let alone French) and relied on gesturing and making sounds to communicate, Jongdae smiled disarmingly at the shelter workers and exchanged a few sentences in slightly accented English. Baekhyun had the feeling that Kyungsoo might have something to do with it- out of all of them, he had the best English, and seemed to soak up any bits of foreign languages that came to his ear; he probably taught Jongdae some English over their connection.

As they sat on the bed in the corner of the sleeping hall, Baekhyun curled himself up against Jongdae’s side and refused to let go. Still overwhelmed and slightly weakened from his power burst, he allowed himself to soak up his boyfriend’s presence- how warm his body was, how thin he’s gotten since the last time they saw each other, how he smelled slightly of metal and copper, but also of home. Baekhyun buried his face in the crook of Jongdae’s neck and shared the little information he had from there, voice muffled against Jongdae’s neck and his lips brushing soft skin. 

(Words cannot describe how pleased he was whenever he felt Jongdae shiver at the little kisses he pressed there every once in a while. He knew they were both _bursting_ with _want_ , but this wasn’t the place or the time to do anything about it.)

They spoke in low hums and hushed whispers, even though Baekhyun was fairly sure no one in the shelter knew Korean. It added to their sense of safety and brought them back to familiar days.

Baekhyun frowns, fingers playing with the hem of Jongdae’s shirt. “Won’t it make more sense to at least pick up Junmyeon first? He’s closer. I’ve felt him in France.”

Jongdae shakes his head. “Jongin can get us anywhere faster. It’d be a lot easier to just zap around then have me flying us both across Europe. We can cover more ground in less time like that.”

A soft hum leaves Baekhyun’s throat and he closes his eyes, feeling his eyelashes brush against skin as he does. Jongdae’s playing with his hair, nails scratching against his scalp, and it makes him sleepy; he has to force himself to stay awake, because this is important. “So after we pick up Jongin,” he starts, waiting for Jongdae to pitch in. He always did have more of a strategic mindset, being the smartest one of them all. 

The lightning bender thinks for a while, thumb rubbing small circles into Baekhyun’s nape. “We can pick up Sehun, too, since he’s closest to Jongin. Then Minseok and Junmyeon. After that-”

“Yixing,” Baekhyun interrupts, voice leaving no room for argument. He _misses_ his Parallel, the distance between them feeling like a fresh burn that screams for ice. It agonizes him; he _needs_ to see his Parallel, needs to know that he’s okay. The presence in his head is comforting and steady, but it’s nothing compared to having Yixing in front of him, being able to touch him.

He’s turned quiet, he realizes, after mentioning the healer. He probably sounds miserable; he definitely feels the part.

“Yixing,” Jongdae agrees, arms pulling Baekhyun closer. Baekhyun feels a kiss being pressed into his hair. “How is he?”

“Good, actually,” he replies happily. He’s pleased with how well his Parallel managed to survive, but that was Yixing all over: adaptable. “He’s staying at some halfway house in Yunnan. He charmed the owner into letting him stay.” Baekhyun can’t help the bit of amusement that slips into his voice at that. Yixing could charm a crocodile.

Jongdae laughs, a hearty chuckle that Baekhyun feels vibrating through his throat. “That’s Yixing, alright.”

He’s laughing, but Baekhyun can detect slight sadness in his boyfriend’s voice. With a jolt, he realizes what it’s about; spread all across the globe like that, they all have each other to miss, but nothing can quite match to the pain of an absent Parallel. “Kyungsoo?” he asks, voice small.

The breath that Jongdae takes stutters on its way in. “He’s okay. That’s enough for me. I can’t imagine if-”

He stops himself short, wincing at what he was about to imply. Baekhyun hisses with pain at the mere thought of it. 

_What if he died?_

A dead Parallel was a sensitive subject in their rag-tag team. Taboo, even; ever since Wufan died, the first of their friends to go and leave Chanyeol without a Parallel, they all held onto their Parallels that much tighter, afraid to let go, scared that the next day will be their last one together. Chanyeol withdrew into himself completely, lashing out at whoever approached him, flames burning in his eyes and licking at his fingertips. None of them could imagine what being alone inside their head would be like; they didn’t want to.

Then Luhan died. Jongin crumbled into nothing. He stayed in his cubicle for weeks, not eating and barely drinking; he didn’t struggle when the red nurses came to take him to the daily inspections, just laid on the operation table like he wasn’t even there. They watched as he almost destroyed himself and felt helpless. Parallels walked in pairs in the halls- Minseok and Junmyeon held hands at all times, Zitao and Sehun curled up together in Sehun’s cubicle whenever they could; even Kyungsoo, strong, stony Kyungsoo, who rarely touched anyone of his own free will and scowled at those who tried, buried his head in Jongdae’s shoulder and shivered in his arms. Baekhyun and Yixing held onto each other viciously, with the resolve of a mother bear protecting her cubs. 

They all thought the same thing- _if he goes, I go with him._

Zitao’s death left Sehun a hollow shell. Nothing got through to him. He cared about nothing. His usually skinny frame got even skinnier, skin pale like a ghost and his signature emotional stare now genuine. Chanyeol, who was beginning to recover from the loss of Wufan, sat with him and comforted him silently. 

They were all doing better now. Time helped, and the support of their friends. They got better, but at what cost?

Baekhyun presses himself into Jongdae’s side, slipping a hand under the lightning bender’s shirt to rub patterns into the smooth skin of his hip. This close, he can feel Jongdae’s body shaking; he despises it. His Jongdae was always so brave, so considerate, so selfless, that seeing him display negative emotions was an indicator that something was truly wrong. He can smell copper in the air and feel the hair on his head standing up and tenses, lifting his head from his boyfriend’s neck to look at his face. 

Jongdae’s eyes are closed and his brow furrowed, lips pursed into a tight line. Baekhyun moves to cup one of Jongdae’s cheeks and turn his head so he can face him, but as soon as his fingers make contact with Jongdae’s skin he feels a sharp _zing_ of static shoot into his fingertips. Baekhyun frowns. _Something’s wrong_. Jongdae never loses control over his power like this; he’s too collected for that.

“Jongdae,” he tries carefully, a bit of alarm slipping into his voice. “Baby, you’re projecting. You have to calm down.” he throws a quick look around- nobody’s noticed, but if Jongdae doesn’t get a hold of himself soon, they will. Baekhyun doesn’t want to think of what will occur if _that_ happens.

It looks like Baekhyun got through to him; slowly, Jongdae’s eyes open. They’re electric blue, but the color fades as Jongdae regains control over his power until they’re back to their natural, dark brown shade. Baekhyun’s hair smoothes back down. The smell of copper is gone. Jongdae’s back, staring at Baekhyun like he just first saw him, and Baekhyun does his best to give him a reassuring smile. He doesn’t get a static shock when he cups Jongdae’s cheek this time, nor when he presses their foreheads together.

“Did I hurt anyone? Did I hurt _you_?” Are the first words out of Jongdae’s mouth the moment he’s settled down enough to speak, voice wavering on the edge of panic. Baekhyun shakes his head and Jongdae exhales in relief, grabbing the hand Baekhyun has on his cheek and pressing a sweet kiss to the palm before holding it to his chest, close and possessive. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to.”

Baekhyun chuckles. “I know you didn’t, idiot. It’s okay.” 

Jongdae’s voice is painfully honest when he answers. “I don’t know what I’d do if I hurt you.”

They settle into comfortable silence, all wrapped up in each other, breathing the other in. Baekhyun feels Jongdae’s heartbeat under his fingertips, calm and steady and matching exactly with Baekhyun’s, and it fills him with unimaginable warmth. After everything that’s happened- their escape, crash-landing in Lyon, his power burst- it feels so nice to just relax and _be_ without having to worry about anything, at least for the time being. Having Jongdae there with him is a privilege Baekhyun is immensely thankful for- while everyone else is alone, they’re together, safer. Baekhyun’s tired eyes slide shut. Nothing can scare him while Jongdae’s with him.

“I’ve missed you,” he mumbles. This close, he can feel it when Jongdae smiles and leans forward to steal a soft kiss from his lips.

“Me too,” he whispers back, chuckling when Baekhyun chases him for another kiss. He kisses back, though, dragging Baekhyun closer by the back of his neck.

The kiss is cut abruptly when a huge yawn escapes Baekhyun, surprising them both before sending Jongdae in a hysterical laughing fit (which Baekhyun shushes because _people are looking_ ). 

“Go to sleep,” Jongdae says after he’s calmed down, leaning back and dragging Baekhyun down with him until they’re lying down on the bed with Baekhyun practically on top of Jongdae. “I’ll watch over you.”

“Mmmkay,” Baekhyun hums, getting comfortable and closing his eyes. 

He hasn’t slept this well in days.

\------

Jongin is actually ridiculously easy to locate, considering how huge London is and how easily Jongin could pop off to another country, or even another _continent_.

“Jongin!” Baekhyun practically screams as he runs over to him from the other side of the busy street, dragging Jongdae after him by the hand. They’ve flown over there using Jongdae’s newfound power and used their senses to pinpoint Jongin’s exact location- the closer they were to him, the easier it was to do. Not to mention that Jongin himself was pretty easy to detect- a tall, handsome man walking about London with a jacket draped over his shoulders like some kind of model. Baekhyun should really give him a lesson on how to blend in.

The young teleporter’s eyes widen as soon as he turns around and spots Baekhyun racing towards him through the crowds; they widen even more when he sees Jongdae tripping over cracks in the street and cursing behind him. “Hyung?” he asks, bewildered and disbelieving, when the two finally reach him and engulf him in a hug. “What are you- how-”

Baekhyun can’t bring himself to stop smiling when he pulls back to examine his younger friend, one hand on the teleporter’s shoulder and the other clasped tightly in Jongdae’s. “Look at you!” he exclaims, practically vibrating with excitement. “You fashionable young man! You’re gonna dazzle the world, you are-”

Jongin gapes. “Hyung-”

“-and you’re doing so well, matching your colors like a pro, I didn’t teach you how to do that-”

“ _Hyung_ -”

“-where did you even get these clothes, you sneaky little bastard, what the fuck-”

“ _Hyung_!” Jongin finally cuts in, exasperatedly fond. “What are you even doing here?” throwing a look at Jongdae, who’s looking around and trying to seem like he has no connection to Baekhyun even though he’s literally holding his hand, Jongin does a double-take, then smiles. “Of course you’re both here. Nothing can separate you two.”

Jongdae flushes a bright red color; Baekhyun smiles pleasantly and flicks Jongin on the forehead. “Brat.”

Holding his forehead, Jongin whines. “Are you gonna explain to me what the hell is going on?”

They take turns in telling the story, occasionally cutting into the other’s sentences to supply some much-needed information (“Baek _totally_ cried when he saw me.” “Shut up, I did _not_!” “Yes you did. And it was adorable.” “You two are gonna make me gag.”). By the end of it, Jongin has an idea of what the plan is- and he is not happy about it.

“I mean,” he defends himself when he receives glares (Baekhyun) and surprised looks (Jongdae) after stating so, “I’m just not sure I can do that. Teleporting takes a lot of power, especially if I’m teleporting over long distances and taking other people with me. It’ll drain me.” He looks between them apologetically, shrugging. “I don’t know if I’m strong enough.”

Surprisingly, Jongdae smiles and claps a hand on Jongin’s shoulder. “I have a theory,” he starts as they both stare at him. “I don’t know if it’s true, but if it is, you’ll be able to do it.”

Baekhyun narrows his eyes at his boyfriend. _He’s hiding something_. Granted, Jongdae does have the tendency to come up with ideas and keep them to himself until he’s sure they’d work (their escape plan was made up mostly by him), but something about this feels… fishy. 

Jongdae squeezes Baekhyun’s hand and does the same to Jongin’s shoulder. “Trust me,” he says, voice warm.

Jongin’s eyes flutter over Jongdae’s face, unsure; he bites on his plump lower lip for a few seconds, then nods. “Okay.”

Then they both turn to look at Baekhyun. He feels like a bad magician in a kid’s birthday party, caught in the limelight with no clue what to do, but then he looks at Jongdae’s smile and something inside him melts. He knows Jongdae would never hurt any of them.

Raising his boyfriend’s hand to his lips, Baekhyun kisses his knuckles. “Always,” he promises, looking into Jongdae’s eyes.

Jongin pretends to vomit.

 

\------

 

Sehun jumps into their arms the second he sees them and refuses to let go for a good solid minute, and when he does, his face is streaked with tears. Baekhyun cooes and Jongdae kisses his forehead and cheeks; Jongin tugs him against his side as he teleports them away.

Junmyeon kisses all of their faces and barely holds back tears as he tells them how proud he is of them. They don’t even pretend to be disgusted- they’re all truly happy to see him.

Minseok hugs them all, but he latches onto Junmyeon like a vice. They all smile and look away; it’s always great to see Parallels reunite, but it also feels like they’re intruding on something private, intimate. 

“Can you teleport us one more time?” Jongdae asks Jongin while they’re giving the Parallels some time alone. 

Jongin nods, smile wide with the happiness of seeing his friends. He hasn’t let go of Sehun once since they picked him up. “Sure,” he chirps. “Where to?”

Jongdae looks at Baekhyun and smiles, one eyebrow raised knowingly. Baekhyun beams as he retreats inside his own head and looks after his Parallel.

_Yixing? We’re coming for you._


	3. pt.3

Yixing wraps Baekhyun in a hug as soon as they land in his apartment, grabbing his arms and tugging him into his embrace. Baekhyun melts into it and closes his eyes as he returns the hug, burying his face in the crook of Yixing’s neck. He smells like he always does, of cleanliness and bed sheets and peppermint, and Baekhyun inhales the smell in until his lungs are full of it. The burning feeling of being far away from his Parallel is covered in ice now; he’s finally complete. 

Yixing’s thoughts are racing, happy and free and full to the brim with so much love for him that Baekhyun feels tears springing into his eyes; he doesn’t stop them, letting them spill over and onto Yixing’s skin. _I’ve missed you so much_ , he tells Yixing, voice choked and raspy even in his thoughts.

Immediately, Yixing wraps him in soft love and reassurement. His arms tighten around Baekhyun’s waist. _I’m never leaving you again, baby boy. That’s a promise._

 _See if I let you_ , Baekhyun jokes back weakly and nuzzles the crook of his neck. Yixing sends him a mental nudge to the shoulder for his trouble. Even though his words were meant to be a joke, Baekhyun realizes that there’s a very real layer of serious intent underneath the humor- he won’t let Yixing get away from him ever again, at least not voluntarily. He won’t relive those agonizing past few days without his Parallel; he refuses to even think of it. 

Yixing’s mind hums comfortingly, his hands rubbing up and down Baekhyun’s back as he sways them gently from side to side. It might look stupid to bystanders, but it’s actually extremely calming, Baekhyun finds. Yixing had his way of making Baekhyun’s bleak thoughts turn into happier ones, tinging them pink. In that sense, Yixing wasn’t just a physical healer, but a mental one, as well.

A sudden sneeze from behind them makes Baekhyun jump; he looks back and is actually surprised to learn that the very presence of Yixing in the same room with him made him forget that there were _other_ people there with them. He flushes slightly at the realization and changes his position so he’s no longer hugging his Parallel, but holding hands with him, hoping to appear more casual and reserved. He doesn’t miss the way Yixing chuckles under his breath and plants a peck behind his ear.

Minseok has his hands over his mouth and nose, eyes wide as if he surprised _himself_ with his own sneezing. “Sorry,” he apologizes shyly, voice muffled from behind his hands. “It’s really fucking cold in Berlin.”

Someone holds back a snort and there are a few raised eyebrows in the room. It’s more than ironic that _Minseok_ , of all people, would catch a cold, since he seemed to be immune to them. Junmyeon clicks his tongue in disapproval and rubs his Parallel’s back as the oldest in the room pulls his stuffy nose. Sehun and Jongin are barely holding in their laughter, but Jongdae’s frowning, eyes darting from left to right as if his brain is processing information quickly, storing data; Baekhyun makes a mental note to ask him about it later. He doesn’t like it when Jongdae keeps things from him.

At least Minseok’s sneeze made Yixing spring into life- he jumps forward and engulfs everyone in a hug, one by one, chattering happily about their well-being and how glad he is to see them. He kisses Sehun’s forehead and spends two minutes fawning over Jongin, who he always had a soft spot for. His mental happiness is infectious, seeping into Baekhyun’s mind until he’s beaming too.

While Yixing’s busy having a full-on Mandarin conversation with Jongdae and Minseok, Baekhyun looks around the apartment. It’s not _really_ an apartment, so to speak- more like a medium-sized room with a tiny kitchen and a queen sized bed and a door to what Baekhyun guesses must be the bathroom. There’s a potted plant sitting in one corner and a worn leather couch pushed up against an empty wall; a rug that must’ve been white at one point covers most of the floor. The only window in the room looks out onto a tall building just across the street.

A Mandarin word catches Baekhyun’s attention back to the people in the room- “ _Boxian_ ”, the Mandarin pronunciation of his name, said in Jongdae’s voice. When Baekhyun looks at him he smiles and raises his eyebrows, as if waiting for Baekhyun to say something. Throwing a quick look around, Baekhyun notes the looks of confusion on Jongin, Sehun and Junmyeon’s faces, reassuring him that he’s not the only one left out of the loop. “I’m sorry, what?” he asks, slightly embarrassed.

Minseok snorts and Yixing rolls his eyes fondly. “I was telling them about what happened in Lyon,” Jongdae explains kindly, reaching out to take Baekhyun’s hand in his own and giving it a light squeeze. “Wanna fill them in?”

Ah. _That_ , Baekhyun can do. He tells his story up until the moment he met Jongdae and triggers a series of stories from all the men in the room, sharing their tales from the time they spent apart. 

Minseok found an apartment and a job at a local Korean eatery, where he could at least understand what was being said to him (“Wait, shit, I didn’t tell my boss I was leaving, _fuck_ -”). Over his link to Junmyeon and with the help of his senses he figured out where some of them were, but neither he nor his Parallel knew how to assemble them all in the same place.

Junmyeon got by. Slept on park benches and wandered around aimlessly, trying to come up with a plan to get back to his friends and assure their collected safety. Since Baekhyun was the only one in the same actual country as him, he tried to figure out how to get to him, then Minseok, but he had no money and didn’t know any French, so he settled on waiting. Maybe someone else will think of something.

Having lived most of his young adult life restrained in a facility with no freedom, only to escape and end up with _way too much_ freedom, Sehun was scared out of his mind. He stole from convenience stores just so he could eat and survive, and frantically hoped that one of his friends would come and save him; he had no doubt in mind that they will, eventually.

Jongin was afraid of using his power to get to his friends, even though he sensed them nearby. London was a big city with eyes all over the place, and he was gripped by the unrelenting fear that if someone saw him teleport, he’d be sent back to that horrible facility. He was surprised (and relieved), then, when he teleported along with Baekhyun and Jongdae, and later on Junmyeon, Minseok, and Sehun, and nothing happened. 

He wasn’t scared anymore.

“Wait, wait,” Yixing interrupts, brow furrowed in confusion. “You teleported all of these guys halfway across the world, and you’re _fine_? You could barely teleport me to my cubicle from the common room before!”

Jongin flushes at that statement, a reminder of his once-weak power, and shrugs. “Honestly, I feel great,” he says with a tiny smile, shrinking under the weight of all of their combined looks. “Really! Not even a tiny bit tired.”

Next to him, Baekhyun feels Jongdae tense. Looking over at him from the corner of his eye, Baekhyun studies his boyfriend’s expression: cryptic, carefully guarded, like someone just told him some terrible news and he was trying to keep a straight face. 

The fingers woven in between Baekhyun’s tighten; he thinks he can smell copper in the air.

“That’s great,” he smiles at Jongin before anyone else can notice Jongdae’s sudden tenseness. “You know what else is great? Kyungsoo’s alive.”

Of course mentioning Kyungsoo would make Jongdae loosen up- it’s almost ridiculous how quickly his expression changes from stony to an all-out _beam_. There are loud cheers from their friends and a shower of questions rains on Jongdae as they try to get more information about their resident earthbender. Jongdae answers them all happily, eyes glinting with that light that’s reserved just for Kyungsoo. Baekhyun stands next to him and tries not to let any of the momentary panic he felt show on his face. 

The minute he gets Jongdae alone, he _will_ find out what the fuck is going on.

\------

Baekhyun can’t sleep.

After their catching up session in Yixing’s tiny apartment, they went out to eat at a cheap restaurant just down the road from where Yixing was staying. Sehun literally devoured anything edible placed in front of him, which made Baekhyun wonder how much he actually had to eat when he was alone. He was quickly distracted, however, by the conversation going on over the food on the table.

“We’ll rest here tonight,” Minseok said around a mouthful of fried duck meat. “No point in testing Jongin’s boundaries, strong as they may be.”

“Hey!” Jongin protested, affronted. Sehun patted his thigh sympathetically before turning back to his plate. Minseok shrugged apologetically, even though the smile on his face didn’t look like one of remorse.

Yixing nodded and swallowed his mouthful before speaking. “The apartment across from mine is empty. I can talk to the landlord, see if some of you guys can stay there for the night. The rest can stay at my place. The couch opens into a bed.”

“Awesome,” Baekhyun said, raising his head from Jongdae’s shoulder. “I call Yixing’s couch.”

“I’m with Baekhyun,” Jongdae added immediately, even though no one was thinking otherwise. 

Junmyeon rolled his eyes over his chopsticks. “We’ll talk about sleeping arrangements later. What matters now is the plan for tomorrow.”

“Well, I mean,” Jongin started, shifting in his seat uncomfortably, “I can probably teleport everyone over to Kyungsoo and then go and pick up Chanyeol. Where did you say Kyungsoo said he is?” he asked Jongdae, who was caught unguarded while raising a spoon to his mouth to take a sip of his soup.

“Um,” he said, putting his spoon down with a disappointed pout that Baekhyun thought looked _adorable_ on him. “Arizona, I think.”

Sharing a wary look with his Parallel, Junmyeon cleared his throat. “If you’re sure you can do it,” he told Jongin cautiously. “We don’t want you to keel over or something.”

Jongin deadpanned at him, annoyed. Baekhyun stifled a laugh in Jongdae’s shoulder and was pleased with the kiss to the crown of his head he got in return.

They paid for their meal and returned to Yixing’s apartment; the healer managed to score the flat across from his for the night, so Junmyeon, Minseok, and Sehun moved there to sleep. Jongin settled next to Yixing on his bed, which required quite a lot of shimmying, and Jongdae and Baekhyun took the folding couch.

It wasn’t comfortable; the mattress was thin and springs dug into Baekhyun’s back and sides, making him toss and turn just to find a position where he wouldn’t feel like a pin cushion. Eventually he settled on laying on his side with his chest pressed against Jongdae’s back and an arm thrown over his boyfriend’s waist, breathing in the familiar scent of his hair and the pleasant sensation of Yixing’s sleeping mind buzzing at the back of his skull, but then something else interrupted his sleep.

Thoughts.

More specifically, thoughts about Jongdae. He was worried sick about his boyfriend; his strange behaviour, how he reacted to certain things, how he almost lost control over his powers back in Lyon. It was concerning. It was unlike him, and it made Baekhyun uneasy. Jongdae was hiding something, that much was obvious, but the fact that he wasn’t sharing it with Baekhyun made him think that it had something to do with him- with _all of them_ , their little ragtag group of friends. Which made Baekhyun think that something was wrong. Deeply, seriously wrong.

Jongdae would tell him if they were in danger, right? If there’s one thing Baekhyun knows, it’s that Jongdae would never hurt them, nor would he let them be in danger, either.

So what the fuck was he hiding?

“I can _hear_ you thinking, and I’m not even your Parallel.” 

Jongdae’s whispered words cut into Baekhyun’s train of thought and effectively stop it short. A hand made warm from being covered with sheets covers the one Baekhyun has on Jongdae’s stomach, tangling their fingers together. It’s a sweet gesture, but Baekhyun is way too bothered with his thoughts to appreciate it properly. “What are you thinking about?” Jongdae whispers, moving so his backside is pressed more firmly against Baekhyun’s front, ass snug against his crotch.

On another occasion, Baekhyun might’ve taken the bait, but not tonight. “You’re hiding something from me and I can’t take it,” tumbles out of his mouth before he can stop himself. His voice is a little too loud; Jongin stirrs in his sleep on the bed and Baekhyun mentally curses. Jongdae, however, makes a small noise of confusion and flips himself over so he’s facing Baekhyun, eyebrows furrowed together in his concern. His thumbs come up to Baekhyun’s face, rubbing just underneath his eyes and smearing away the moisture there. With a jolt, Baekhyun realizes he’s crying.

“You always tell me everything,” is the only way he can explain his outburst, voice carrying shame even when pitched to a whisper. 

“That’s not true,” Jongdae counters with a playful grin. “I didn’t tell you I had a crush on you for like, what, a year?”

The snort that leaves Baekhyun is entirely justified, and so is his eyeroll and the smack he delivers to the lightning bender’s chest. “That was something different. You’re hiding something big. Something that has to do with all of us.”

This is an accusation and they both know it; Baekhyun’s tone left no doubt about that. Jongdae bites his lower lip and looks away, over Baekhyun’s shoulder and out the window on the opposite wall. In the silence that follows Baekhyun can hear the steady breathing from the bed that means his Parallel is alive and well, the way the wheels in Jongdae’s head spin when he thinks, and little slivers of Mandarin and Cantonese he learned to recognize thanks to Wufan. He shifts a little under the covers and notices how Jongdae’s eyes flick back to him and turn soft; it makes Baekhyun’s heart beat that much faster.

Carefully, hesitantly, choosing his words, Jongdae speaks. “There _is_ something I’m not telling you, and it _does_ have to do with all of us,” he confirms. “But you’ll all find out soon. I just- I need to talk to Kyungsoo, face-to-face. Then we’ll tell you.”

Baekhyun’s eyes narrow at that last part- so Kyungsoo knows. There’s a tiny part of him that loudly protests over the fact that Jongdae didn’t confide in him first, but most of him- the logical part of his mind- knows that it makes sense, that Kyungsoo is Jongdae’s Parallel and is therefore the first to know what Jongdae’s thinking, and that the two always had a connection between them that was more than the connection between Parallels. Kyungsoo and Jongdae- they were special like that. 

That doesn’t mean that Baekhyun can’t feel jealous, though. He doesn’t like it, but he does feel like that sometimes, even though Jongdae reassured him many times that the relationship between him and his Parallel wasn’t at all like what he and Baekhyun had. It’s irrational and stupid, Baekhyun knows- hell, he cuddles with Yixing all the fucking time, and you don’t see Jongdae throwing a tantrum over that- but knowing that doesn’t stop him from feeling it.

Pushing aside his petty thoughts, Baekhyun sighs and holds Jongdae’s wrists, looking into his boyfriend’s dark brown eyes in search for answers. “Just- just tell me,” he starts, closing his eyes tight in fear of what he might hear, “are any of us in danger?”

He feels Jongdae’s long exhale on his face and his thumbs stroking across his cheek bones. Under other circumstances it might’ve been calming, but Baekhyun’s too on edge to appreciate it at the moment. Jongdae’s answer takes him by surprise- he was honestly waiting for Jongdae to say something confident, like “Never” or “Of course not”, but all that leaves his boyfriend’s mouth is a soft, “I don’t know.”

His voice. Something about it isn’t right. Was it _fear_ Baekhyun heard? If it is, they’re definitely screwed. If _Jongdae’s_ scared, they all have a good reason to be fucking _terrified_. He lets out a defeated whimper and burrows his face into the lightning bender’s neck, clutching the front of his shirt. He just wants to hide.

“Hey, hey now,” Jongdae whispers, tone urgent as he wraps his arms around Baekhyun and presses him as close as he can against his body one hand coming up to play with his hair, lips pressing against his temple. “It’s gonna be okay. Whatever’s going on, we can control it. I have faith in you guys, okay? I’m not gonna let anything happen to you.”

 _I’m not gonna let anything happen to you_. To Baekhyun, it’s clear that he’s not just talking about all of them, but referring to Baekhyun, specifically. It fills him with warmth that spreads from his chest out, making his fingertips tingle; he has absolute faith that whatever happens, Jongdae will protect him. 

“I love you,” he mumbles into Jongdae’s skin, sniffling a little. The last time he said those three words was before their escape from the facility, before everything got royally fucked up. He’s never meant them this much until now.

The arms around him tighten ever so slightly. “I love you too. So, so much.” A light kiss settles on his forehead. “Go to sleep, babe. I’m here.”

Closing his eyes, Baekhyun lets his body relax. If something happens, Jongdae will wake him up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> you bet ur fucking ass i made exo m speak mandarin to each other. im a sucker for mandarin speaking exo m, for obvious reasons.
> 
> sorry if this took long to update, ive been rly fucking busy. enjoy the baekchen fluff and heavy platonic!chensoo feels. next chapter will probably be the last one, so yeah. ull all see just how platonic chensoo trash i am.
> 
> (also listen to oh my girls [liar liar](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dxxvstzeU3o) ;)) )


	4. pt.4

Baekhyun doesn’t think he’ll ever get used to the feeling of teleportation. 

“Ready?” Jongin asks them as they stand in a row, holding hands in Yixing’s tiny apartment. One by one, they all nod, albeit hesitantly. There’s nothing even remotely fun about this experience, even though it’s incredibly efficient. Jongin grins. “Here we go.”

Space blinks in and out of existence; Baekhyun feels the floor of his consciousness wobbling before stabilizing, feet hitting solid ground in Colorado, USA. At least, he _supposes_ that’s where they are; he’s never been to America in his life, and it’s such a big country with such a diverse climate that they could be in Texas or Vermont and he’d be none the wiser. Wherever they are, it’s green and alive with sounds of nature. There’s a gentle breeze passing by, making the trees hum in the wind. Instantly, Baekhyun feels welcome.

 _What do you know about Colorado_? he asks Yixing to his left, squeezing his Parallel’s hand and feeling the way his mind reels from the aftershocks of teleportation. On his right, Jongdae is bouncing on the balls of his feet, excitement clear in the gleam in his eyes and his flushed cheeks. It’s endearing, but something about it sends a painful _pang_ into Baekhyun’s chest, right beneath his heart. He knows why, but he doesn’t want to think about it.

Yixing shakes his head as if trying to get water out of his ears after a swim. _Oh, man, I don’t even know_ , he says, sounding completely out of it. Even in his mind, his words get tinged with a slur of his Chinese accent. _Colorado- isn’t Denver in Colorado?_

Baekhyun blinks. _I didn’t even know there_ is _a city called Denver_.

Over the chuckling in his mind, Baekhyun hears shuffling off to his right, where Junmyeon is holding Minseok and Jongin’s hands and poking his head out to look at the rest of them. “This is only a pit stop,” he announces, voice cheery. Next to him, Jongin is standing with his eyes closed, brow furrowed in concentration and his full lips pursed together. “Jongin is trying to find Kyungsoo’s exact location so he can drop us off before going to pick Chanyeol up.”

A murmur of agreement goes through them. Jongdae’s hand is squeezing Baekhyun’s painfully tight, but he doesn’t complain. Kyungsoo must feel so close but so far away to him at the moment, in the same state but with his actual location unknown. Jongdae can be fidgety all he wants; he’s waited ridiculously long to see his Parallel again. If Baekhyun was him, he’d be asking Jongin to teleport him to his Parallel the moment they first met him in London, but he knows that’s not how Jongdae rolls. First they all get together, alive and safe, and only then can Jongdae revel in the bliss of having Kyungsoo back.

 _You’re nervous_ , Yixing chides gloomily in his head. It’s not a question. _You think he’ll forget all about you the minute he sees Kyungsoo_.

Something about having his fears said to his face (not literally, but kinda) makes them sound so ridiculous that Baekhyun wants to blush and deny ever having them, but one look at Yixing makes him bite his tongue; his Parallel’s eyes are soft and honest, searching his face for an answer. He looks worried, with his head tilted like that. To Yixing’s left, Sehun’s pretending he doesn’t pay attention to the obvious telepathical conversation the Parallels are having; to Baekhyun’s right, Jongdae’s too busy humming a light melody.

Baekhyun swallows hard and looks down, avoiding Yixing’s gaze. _He’s never had before_ , he says, mental voice hushed even though Yixing is the only one who can hear it. _And I’m happy for him_ , he adds. It feels like an excuse. _God knows we all need our Parallels._

Yixing’s eyes turn sad; Baekhyun sees them flick over to Jongin and feels his mind rush over Luhan, Wufan, Zitao. Loss, pain, death, rapid fire until they’re both holding back tears.

Jongin’s voice breaks them out of their morbid thoughts, happy and bright like the sunlight pouring between the leaves. “Found him,” he announces triumphantly. “Get ready.”

Obediently, Baekhyun closes his eyes and prepares himself for teleportation. There’s an empty _whoosh_ in his ears he’d come to associate with the void they travel through, and the ground changes from soft earth to man-made floor tiles. He opens his eyes to the interior of a house; a rather large one, with black and white squares for the floor and solid white walls. There’s a sofa that looks like it’s seen better days, an old wooden coffee table, and a few empty shelves on the walls. A vase in the corner looks thoroughly dead. Everything is covered in a thick layer of dust.

It’s eerily quiet in the room until they all hear a distant _bang_ and a clatter, followed by running feet and a familiar, low voice saying “Oh my god” excitedly. Baekhyun raises an eyebrow and looks at his friends; Yixing, Minseok, and Junmyeon all look just as confused as he feels, but Sehun looks like he’s trying his best not to burst out laughing. Jongin, it seems, has poofed off to find Chanyeol on his own.

Jongdae breaks contact with Baekhyun and Minseok and steps forward, face literally glowing in his excitement, arms raising forward without him seeming to notice as he faces the only door in the room, which is currently closed. The sound of running gets even closer, echoing through what Baekhyun assumes are hallways and ebbing in through the walls until-

The door bangs open and in bursts Kyungsoo, flushed cheeks bunched up in his signature heart smile and his eyes even wider and rounder than usual. “Oh my god, _oh my god_ ,” he repeats, apparently unable to conjure up anything else to say as his eyes land on Jongdae and his entire form tenses; one second, he’s standing in the doorway, huffing and puffing, and the next, he’s throwing himself into his Parallel’s arms, wrapping his own tightly around the lightning bender’s neck as Jongdae lifts him and spins them around, laughing like a child. They all take a step back to avoid being hit by Kyungsoo’s legs, but the smiles on their faces are ones of genuine happiness.

After what seems like a proper amount of spinning, Jongdae finally stops, but he never puts Kyungsoo down; he chooses to look up into his Parallel’s face with unrestrained joy written all over his face, eyes shining a little. Baekhyun doesn’t think he’s ever seen Kyungsoo smile this much, or this hard. It’s infectious, in a way, as he finds that he can’t stop smiling himself. 

The earth bender leans down in his Parallel’s hold and cups his face, pressing kisses over every bit of exposed skin. If it were anyone else but Jongdae, Baekhyun would’ve been seriously shocked, but Kyungsoo was always physically affectionate with Jongdae compared to the rest of them, taking hugs and kisses from his Parallel and actually _growling_ at those who tried to do the same. Jongin always complained that it was unfair, but they all knew that this is just what it’s like with Parallels; you always make an exception for them.

Which is why Baekhyun doesn’t freak out when Kyungsoo leans down and presses his lips against Jongdae’s, and the lightning bender kisses back just as hard, a happy sound resonating through his chest.

It _used_ to freak him out, though, when he and Jongdae first started their relationship. They’ve had many arguments about it, until Jongdae finally told him what it was all about.

 _Kyungsoo doesn’t_ … feel love that way. _Ever. Not like how I feel about you. He just doesn’t work like that. He loves me, but not like that. Kissing on the lips doesn’t mean anything to him, Baek. It’s just another way of expressing affection, to him. Just another place you can kiss, you know? It’s- it’s never like that._

 _But if you do it enough times, won’t_ you _eventually start to feel-_

_No. No, Baekhyun. I love you. It’s always been you. I love Kyungsoo, but not the way I love you._

Well. How could Baekhyun say no to that?

_I love you too._

It doesn’t matter to him, now. Kyungsoo kisses Jongdae on the lips for everything- good morning, good night, good training session, are you scared, I’m here for you, you look cute, have a good meal, I love you- he got used to it. It still made him uncomfortable at times, but the green beast in his chest would quiet down after _that_ particular conversation flashed in his mind. He trusted Jongdae with this.

When the two finally part from their kiss they’re panting but smiling so hard Baekhyun’s afraid their skulls will fall out of their mouths. Still held up, Kyungsoo leans his forehead against Jongdae’s and starts whispering to him, voice soft enough that no one else can hear what he’s saying. Jongdae whispers back, still beaming, and Baekhyun thinks he can smell copper.

Everyone else is trying so hard to give Jongdae and Kyungsoo some space that when Jongin and Chanyeol appear out of thin air right next to Sehun, it feels like a refreshing summer breeze blew into the room. Chanyeol’s smile sure makes him look like one as he goes around hugging them and booming in his obnoxiously loud voice. He looks skinnier, hair lighter than it was the last time Baekhyun saw him, but even his blinding smile can’t distract him from the dark circles beneath his eyes, heavy and pronounced like he hasn’t slept in weeks. His arms tremble a little when he wraps Baekhyun in one of his bear hugs, swallowing him completely with his tall frame.

“Baekhyunnie,” he says, voice softer after getting scolded by Minseok. “It’s so good to see you after-”

After what happened in the facility. Baekhyun’s mind flashes- running hand in hand, Chanyeol dragging him behind him across dark hallways, kissing his forehead and telling him to run before turning around to protect him from the red nurses. The light bender shudders and buries his face in the giant’s chest, wishing he never said anything. “I’m glad you’re alive,” he says and means it. Chanyeol’s eyes are dangerously wet when he pulls back.

“This is amazing,” the fire bender says after he’s finished hugging everyone (Jongdae and Kyungsoo excluded- they’re still completely curled up in each other, but at least Jongdae put Kyungsoo down), voice carrying immense awe in it. “I mean, I could only feel that Kyungsoo was alive, I thought the worst happened, but then _Jongin_ showed up and just, _how_ -”

“It’s a long story,” Junmyeon says with a smile. “We can shorten it, if you want.”

The twinkle in Chanyeol’s eyes is dangerous, for lack of a better word. “Fuck no. Tell me everything.”

By the time they finish the whole story, complete with everyone’s personal tale (Kyungsoo and Jongdae had to break it up for that part) and the explained plan, the sun is heading west and they’re tired. They’ve settled on the lonesome couch somewhere between Jongin and Minseok’s stories, ignoring the thick cloud of dust that rose from it as soon as they sat down; it was too small to seat all of them, obviously, so some had to do with sitting on the floor. Yixing managed to catch a good spot on the couch and Baekhyun settled down in his lap, deciding to give his boyfriend and his Parallel some time together. And anyway, Yixing’s arms around his waist, his chin on his shoulder, and the familiar hum of his mind next to his made Baekhyun relax a little. He didn’t realize how much he’d needed it.

As the conversation goes around the room, Baekhyun studies his friends’ faces, rejoicing in their presence. He didn’t think that getting them all back together would be this easy, but he’s glad that it was. There’s something about being back together in their normal lineup as nine that feels so _right_ that he can feel the most basic and instinctive part of his mind purr in joy. This is how things should always be- all of them, together.

“So I find myself in Arizona, right,” Chanyeol says animatedly, hands waving wildly and smile going out of control as he speaks. “And I don’t know what the fuck’s going on. I only know _two_ things,” he points out, holding out two fingers to list them. “One, Kyungsoo’s somewhere in America with me,” he folds down one finger, “and two, I don’t know any fucking English.”

The room chuckles at that last part, some of them nodding in understanding to show they echo the feeling. Satisfied with the response, Chanyeol continues. “So naturally I think that I gotta get to Kyungsoo and figure things out from there. Only problem is, I don’t have any money, and America’s pretty fucking huge. So I decide that I’m fucked and give the fuck up. Then, a few days later, Jongin shows up out of thin air and poofs me over here,” he finishes, leaning back into the couch after completing his story. Seconds later, he furrows his brow and looks around in confusion. “Wait, what _is_ this place?”

“Yeah, I wanna know too, actually,” Sehun pipes up from his place on the floor, leaning back on both hands with his legs crossed. “It looks like no one’s lived here for ages.”

Humming, Kyungsoo nods to nothing in particular. He’s sitting on the couch with Jongdae’s head leaning on his knee, the lightning bender perched on the floor and his entire body curled towards his Parallel as Kyungsoo runs his fingers through his hair soothingly. They both have that look in their eyes Parallels often get when they’re in each other’s heads- distant, faint, dreamy. When Kyungsoo talks, Jongdae’s lips move in time to his Parallel’s, mouthing every word the minute the earthbender utters it without a second’s delay. No other Parallel couple Baekhyun has seen does _that_ \- that’s unique to Kyungsoo and Jongdae. It’s sweet, if not slightly terrifying. 

“It’s an abandoned house,” Kyungsoo starts, stating the obvious as he looks around. “I actually crash-landed not too far from here. It was the only house I could see, so I walked in.” he shrugs, smiling sheepishly. “I figured that once you all come here it’d be big enough to house all of us. There are more than enough bedrooms and we can take care of electricity and water easily, so why not.”

Junmyeon nods, eyes showing appreciation. “That’s very smart, but we still need to eat and stuff.”

“And clothes,” Baekhyun points out, tugging the front of his shirt and releasing it, expression woeful. “I haven’t changed in days.”

“Picked up a job at the nearest gas station,” Kyungsoo and Jongdae say in unison. Baekhyun and just about everyone else jump in surprise; Minseok and Jongin clutch at their chests as if their hearts literally skipped a bit.

“Jesus fucking Christ, you’re like the twins from the Shining,” Minseok mumbles, sounding faint.

When they both smile and dole out apologies, Baekhyun sees it; on Kyungsoo’s cheek, right at the high point where his cheekbone is, there’s a deep, scabbed-over cut, hidden in a deep purple bruise. It looks painful as all hell- Baekhyun’s surprised Kyungsoo can smile despite the pain moving his cheek must cause. “What happened to your cheek?” he asks, voice louder than he intended it to come out and tinged with worry. It draws everyone else’s attention to the bruise; Sehun and Chanyeol hiss in sympathy as Junmyeon makes _tsk_ ing noises, disapproving. Yixing slides out from underneath Baekhyun and moves to crouch in front of the earthbender to scan the wound up close.

Raising a hand to his cheek, Kyungsoo shakes his head. His eyes are wide with alarm. “It’s okay, really,” he assures them, unsuccessfully. “I got cut while landing. It doesn’t hurt that much.”

Even so, Yixing’s fingertips start to glow a light blue as he hovers them over Kyungsoo’s cheek. “I can heal it if you want,” he suggests, voice gentle. Kyungsoo shakes his head and smiles, a small, meek smile. 

“It’s fine,” he says again; his voice holds something urgent in it, panicked. Baekhyun throws a quick look at Jongdae and finds his boyfriend sitting with his body and expression tense, eyes fixed on his Parallel and Yixing like an animal about to attack. It makes Baekhyun swallow hard. He’s sure that if he dared to take a breath, he’d smell metal in the air; the hairs on the back of his neck stand up, sending pinpricks down his spine.

 _Let it go_ , he tells Yixing. His voice comes out breathy and scared, and he has no idea why. His fear bleeds over to the healer, surprising him. _Yixing, let it go. Something’s going on. Don’t touch Kyungsoo._

Yixing’s head flicks towards him so fast Baekhyun almost expects him to get whiplash, and his thoughts are a confused mess. They’re both suddenly hyper-aware of the fact that everyone’s watching them with a mixture of alarm, fear, and cluelessness, which means they have to act like they don’t know anything. Technically, they don’t; Jongdae’s kept Baekhyun pretty much in the dark up until now, making him and Kyungsoo the only ones in the room that know what’s actually going on. That thought sends a spike of anger up Baekhyun’s spine, making his eyes narrow and his nostrils flare. If Jongdae and him were Parallels, he’d be telepathically giving Jongdae a piece of his mind right now; but since they aren’t he just breathes in deeply and keeps his mouth shut.

Slowly, carefully, Yixing retracts his fingers (the edges of which aren’t glowing anymore) from Kyungsoo’s face. The earthbender relaxes slightly, eyes following Yixing back to his seat underneath Baekhyun.

The tense air in the room starts to disperse, which means Chanyeol just _has_ to say something eloquent and brilliant.

“What the fuck was that about?”

This time, when Jongdae and Kyungsoo say “Nothing” in perfect unison, nobody bats an eyelid.

\------

Things are tense for the rest of the evening. They disperse into their bedrooms, feeling like it’s best to stay apart from each other for a while. Baekhyun leans against the wall opposite the one with the door leading to Kyungsoo’s room, arms crossed to seem relaxed and at ease, but eyes furious. Jongdae has entered that room over two hours ago and has not left it since, but the minute he does, Baekhyun will give him something to chew on. This whole mysteriousness deal is coming to an end _tonight_.

Sehun passes by on the way to the room he shares with Jongin and Chanyeol; the minute he sees Baekhyun seething alone in the hallway, he mutters some choice curse words and ducks his head as he speeds by the livid light bender, nearly throwing himself into his room and slamming the door behind him in his haste to escape. Baekhyun barely spares him a glance. The more he waits, the angrier he gets, which makes him _really fucking angry_ by now. 

The lights in the hallway, now working thanks to Jongdae’s power, flicker dangerously.

 _Calm down, baby boy_ , Yixing mumbles in his mind. He sounds sleepy, like Baekhyun’s angry thoughts woke him up. _You’re gonna plunge us all into darkness._

 _Go to sleep, hyung, I gotta kick my boyfriend’s ass_ , Baekhyun snaps, eyes never leaving the door in front of him.

Yixing sighs, but sends him the image of him backing away with hands raised in surrender. _You know that if you’ll lay a single finger on Jongdae Kyungsoo will personally fight you, right?_

An ugly snort leaves Baekhyun, both in his head and his actual mouth. _What makes you so sure I’m gonna spare Kyungsoo, hyung?_

 _Good fucking luck_ and some fond amusement is all he gets in return before his Parallel falls back asleep, mind shutting off faster than Baekhyun could say thanks. 

The house falls into silence. Baekhyun would’ve assumed that Jongdae and Kyungsoo went to sleep, if it weren’t for the light peeking through the crack at the bottom of the door. They’re speaking over their link, then, to make sure no one hears them. It’s a smart move, but it makes Baekhyun boil with rage. If they’re hiding crucial information from all of them, if they think they’re in danger and are _doing nothing_ -

The door swings open and out comes Jongdae, followed closely by Kyungsoo. They both look exhausted and wary, but Baekhyun finds no remorse inside himself when he straightens up and gives Jongdae his most scalding look. The lightning bender stops dead in his tracks and throws his arms to the sides to protect his Parallel (which is ridiculous because Kyungsoo is one of their strongest) as Baekhyun storms up to his boyfriend and grabs him by the collar, tugging them close until their noses are touching. This close, Baekhyun can look straight into Jongdae’s eyes and see them turn from alarmed to confused to steel-hard in a matter of a second.

Behind him, Kyungsoo tenses, ready to fight, voice bearing danger as he growls. “Baekhyun, _leave him alone_.” The ground starts to shake ever so slightly at his words, the floor vibrating ominously beneath Baekhyun’s feet. He knows Kyungsoo will use his power to his advantage without batting an eyelid; he’ll do anything to ensure his Parallel’s safety, no matter how miniscule the threat may seem.

“It’s okay,” Jongdae promises, eyes never leaving Baekhyun’s as he easily releases himself from the light bender’s hold and straightens his shirt; in a way, he’s saving him. “Go inside, Soo, I’ll talk to him.”

It seems to take a monumental effort on his behalf, but finally Kyungsoo nods curtly and presses a peck on Jongdae’s cheek before stepping inside the room and closing the door, leaving the couple alone. Jongdae drops his arms and folds them instead, raising an eyebrow at his boyfriend, waiting for him to talk. 

Boy, does Baekhyun want to _talk_.

“You need to come clean,” he starts, tone full of fire as he jabs his forefinger into an open palm. “Cut the mysterious crap. Stop whispering and giggling with Kyungsoo and tell us-” _tell me_ “-what’s going on, because _this_ , Jongdae, what you two are doing right now, isn’t fucking cute. You told me we’re in danger. You told me that this is bad. Keeping the rest of us in the dark like that while we’re in risk and weird fucking things are happening left and right just isn’t _fair_. If you didn’t want Yixing to heal Kyungsoo earlier, you should have told him why instead of just freaking us all out.” The mention of his Parallel shakes something inside Baekhyun’s chest and reminds him what he has to protect, turning his voice softer but more serious. “This isn’t some spy novel, Jongdae, this is _real life_ , we’ve lost _way_ too fucking much to get here, and I won’t let you and Kyungsoo knowingly risk our lives for the sake of your little secret.”

When he finishes speaking, his chest is rising and falling rapidly and he’s shaking with rage. He looks at Jongdae defiantly and waits for his response, wiping some spit from his chin while he’s at it. Jongdae’s looking at him calmly, which sends another annoyed ripple down Baekhyun’s spine. “Tomorrow,” the lightning bender says. His voice betrays nothing. “We’ll tell you tomorrow.”

Baekhyun narrows his eyes. It’s not what he was hoping for, but it _is_ pretty late and it looks like it’s the best deal he’s gonna get. “Good,” he hisses, taking a step back towards the room he shares with Yixing. He’s done here. He gets to the door and already has his hand on the knob before an old saying crosses his mind- _never go to bed angry_. He’s not exactly sure if it’s meant for couples or if it’s just some motivational slogan, but something about it rings true enough to make him turn around and face his boyfriend once again, expression and tone deliberately softer. “I love you, Jongdae, but you’ve really pissed me off. Let me cool down, okay?”

His eyes search the lightning bender’s face desperately as Baekhyun hopes to high heavens that Jongdae understands. _Please, let him understand_.

It seems like his prayers worked- despite the tense situation, Jongdae gives him a dazzling smile that makes Baekhyun’s heart ache, even with how angry he is. “I love you too,” he says easily, like nothing ever happened, like he’ll never get tired of saying and _meaning_ it. “Good night, Baek.”

Baekhyun nods and turns his back towards Jongdae, shoulders heavy. Falling asleep in his Parallel’s arms is almost as good as falling asleep in the arms of the love of his life.

\------

Jongdae makes good on his promise. The next morning, when Baekhyun and Yixing go downstairs to the living room, he and Kyungsoo are standing in the middle of the room in front of everybody, faces grim like the bearers of bad news. Sleep had done wonders to Baekhyun’s nerves; when he walks past Jongdae to sit on the floor between Jongin and Yixing, he returns the smile his boyfriend gives him and lets him kiss his forehead, but nothing else. Not until Kyungsoo and Jongdae actually spill it.

(Nevertheless, it’s kind of nice to stand in the circle of his boyfriend’s arms and feel his lips press against his skin, soft and warm, like they always do. He almost wishes Jongdae could feel the longing gnawing at the inside of his chest when he moves away from his boyfriend and settles next to Yixing on the floor with his back leaning against the sofa.

Yixing’s arm around his shoulders fills the cold space in his stomach with warmth, even if it’s just for a few minutes. _I’m sure he feels it too, baby boy_.)

“So,” Kyungsoo starts, fingers playing with the hem of his shirt nervously as his eyes dart across their faces, seeing and not seeing them at the same time. Somehow, the bruise on his cheek is gone- skin unbroken. “You’re probably all wondering what that thing with Yixing yesterday was all about.”

Behind Baekhyun, on the sofa, Junmyeon scoffs. “That would be an understatement.” 

When Baekhyun looks around at his friends, he notices that he’s not the only one who noticed the lack of bruise on Kyungsoo’s cheek- Minseok’s eyes are locked on the earthbender’s face- which ultimately means Junmyeon has noticed too- Chanyeol has his mouth slightly agape, and Sehun and Jongin are exchanging weirded-out looks. Neither of them know what’s going on, but if there’s anyone who can explain it to them, it’s the duo standing in front of them.

The duo that is currently exchanging dark glances, no doubt having a quick conversation over their telepathic link. Baekhyun watches expectantly as Kyungsoo juts his chin out and leans his head towards the men watching them, eyes looking at Jongdae like he’s trying to get a point across to him. Jongdae doesn’t look to happy about it, but eventually he gives his Parallel a short nod and they both face their friends again, linking their pinkies together as they do. The lightning bender’s eyes meet Baekhyun’s, who in turn raises an eyebrow at his boyfriend to say _get on with it_.

With a small smile, Jongdae does just that. 

“As you all know, for the past several years we’ve all been held in a facility set in the forests of South Korea,” he begins confidently, ignoring the wince that went through the room at the mention of that dreaded place. “In that facility we’ve trained daily, ate, slept, and had- medical exams every month.” his voice wavers at that last part, no doubt remembering those horrifying medical exams that resembled torture more than anything. Kyungsoo takes a sideways step that lands him right at his Parallel’s side, their shoulders pressed together. Jongdae takes a shaky breath. “Did any of you think _why_ we were being held there?”

Jongin shifts uneasily next to Baekhyun. “I think we all did, but,” his voice takes on a hesitant waver. “I kind of get it? Our powers, they-” he stops himself short, seemingly unable to speak what he thought next as his eyes turn to the floor. On his other side, Sehun takes the teleporter’s arm and hugs it, leaning his head on his friend’s shoulder. He looks extremely juvenile like this, and something inside Baekhyun twists with the need to protect him from the world.

“We’re dangerous,” completes Sehun in a barely audible murmur. 

“That’s not true,” Junmyeon contradicts him, but they can all hear the uncertain note in his voice. 

It kind of is, though. Baekhyun thinks of Lyon, how he caused the entire city to plunge into darkness in a matter of seconds without even meaning to; his power acted on its own, uncalled and unchecked. He thinks of Jongdae and how often he’s smelled copper in the air since they escaped- all of which were triggered by small inconveniences, a sentence or an action out of line. If this is what they’re capable of when they’re not paying attention, what kind of havoc can they wreak with their hearts set on a goal?

 _Way too much_ , Yixing quips in his mind. The hope is all gone from his voice, replaced by the dark fog of fear. Baekhyun curls away from it and scooches closer to his Parallel, seeking the comfort that the healer usually supplies so easily. It’s unsettling when he gets none.

Jongdae shakes his head and plows on, seemingly unaffected by the somber turn the conversation took. “We’ve been thinking,” he says, clearly meaning him and Kyungsoo. “Ge, remember what you said back in Yunnan, about how before Jongin couldn’t teleport you from your cubicle to the common room without getting tired, and now he can teleport seven of us from China to Colorado without even breaking a sweat?” he asks Yixing, eyes starting to twinkle the way they do when he gets excited about something.

Yixing furrows his brows. In his mind, Baekhyun can see him pulling up the vague memory of him saying those exact same words. “Yeah, I remember,” he says cautiously. “What’s that got to do with it?”

“ _Everything_ ,” Kyungsoo and Jongdae say together.

“We think the facility had some kind of force field around it that weakened our powers significantly, and when we escaped, our powers came back to full potential,” Kyungsoo picks up, practically bouncing on the balls of his feet as he points to his cheek- the one that until yesterday was covered in a nasty bruise but was now unmarred. “Look at what simply being in the same _house_ as you did, hyung,” he tells Yixing, smile wide.

Baekhyun looks at his Parallel with awe. Both of their minds are reeling, racing to take in the new information that was so messily tossed at them.

Kyungsoo continues, spreading his fingers wide as if he’s going to count off a list on them. “The forest fires in Arizona,” he says, looking at Chanyeol and folding one finger. “The super-strong winds in Edinburgh,” he addresses Sehun, folding another finger. “The blackout in Lyon,” he accuses Baekhyun. “The sea’s level rising and flooding Marseille,” he tells Junmyeon. Another folded finger. “The temperatures in Berlin dropping lower than they ever have in the past twenty years,” he points at Minseok. As he lists all of those, his voice climbs higher and higher with excitement, his eyes shining like his Parallel’s.

“So what? That doesn’t mean anything,” Minseok argues. He’s sitting up stiffly on the sofa, arms crossed defiantly as he looks at Kyungsoo with his eyebrows raised. If he were a cat, his fur would be standing up by now. “The weather in Berlin could’ve been shit without me.”

Kyungsoo and Jongdae both raise one eyebrow right back at him, mirroring his position with their arms crossed on their chests. “You caught a cold,” they point out. Their tones are final, like that sentence alone explains everything.

 _Of course_ , Baekhyun thinks, remembering how Jongdae tensed when Minseok sneezed back in Yunnan- he _gets it_ now, gets that that solitary sneeze lit a warning light in Jongdae’s mind. Minseok never gets cold, ever- his power protect him from it, adjusting to low temperatures so he doesn’t get sick. This time, it must’ve flared out and affected Minseok too- froze him enough to catch a cold. _It makes sense_.

“Holy shit,” Chanyeol mumbles, sounding like he just got hit by a truck after having probably reached the same conclusion as Baekhyun. “Holy shit, you might be right.”

The smug grins on Kyungsoo and Jongdae’s faces are kind of infuriating. “We know we are,” they say together, pleased, as always, to hear that they’re right. Yep, definitely infuriating.

A thought crosses Baekhyun’s mind, quick like a lightning. “Wait,” he says suddenly, raising a hand as if to physically stop everyone else in their tracks. He looks at Jongdae, who drops the smugness in his smile and blinks pleasantly at him. “You can manipulate the magnetic fields to fly now. That’s how you got to me, and how we got to Jongin,” he recalls.

“That’s awesome,” Sehun cries, eyes torn wide with admiration.

“Wish I could do that,” Chanyeol agrees, nodding along.

Jongdae, however, doesn’t look all that happy about it. He and Kyungsoo exchange uneasy looks, the earthbender pressing his lips to a thin line. “That’s not all,” he exclaims finally, nudging his Parallel’s side with an elbow, voice soft with caution and affection. “Show them, Dae.”

It looks like Jongdae’s having a mental battle with his Parallel and losing; with a defeated sigh he nods and turns around, grabbing the hem of his shirt and pulling it up to remove it. The hoots and calls of “ _Dude, what are you doing_ ” are hushed abruptly when the shirt lands on the floor and the skin of Jongdae’s back is revealed. Baekhyun lets out an involuntary whimper.

Jongdae’s back, once smooth and unmarked, is now _covered_ in what looks like intricate branching patterns, passing underneath his skin, standing out with their angry red color. His entire back is covered in them, stretching over every inch of skin and going up to his shoulders, probably continuing over his front, too. They look like lightning bolts, it occurs to Baekhyun, and that realization makes him tense up, hands clenching into fists. Something like dread grips his heart and _squeezes_ until his entire chest is filled with a dull ache that throbs, impossible to ignore. His throat closes up as his mind whirls; he should go, he doesn’t want to see this-

When Jongdae turns around and puts his shirt back on, his smile is sheepish, like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar. “They’re called Lichtenberg Figures,” he explains over the hollow ringing in Baekhyun’s ears. “They’re- they happen when you get struck by lightning, or when you’re exposed to high voltages.”

“What happened?” Junmyeon asks, tone hushed like he’s talking to a wounded puppy. Baekhyun closes his eyes as his heart gives a painful _thud_. He doesn’t want to hear the answer, wishes with all his heart for Jongdae to just _shut up_.

He doesn’t, of course. Typical. “I, uh, I noticed that my power was a lot stronger after I crash-landed. It would erupt and spike violently, and destroy everything around me. So I directed it inside, towards myself.” when Baekhyun opens his eyes, Jongdae’s smiling that stupid charming smile of his. Tears collect in Baekhyun’s eyes, unbeckoned. “It’s better to hurt myself than everyone around me, right?”

That’s it. That’s really the final straw. It feels like he’s in some kind of trance as Baekhyun shoots up to his feet and flees the room, running through hallways and corridors he hasn’t had the time to explore and now doesn’t have the time to appreciate as his vision blurs and smears, turning his surroundings into clumps of blurred color. He can hear Yixing calling him in his mind, telling him to stop, pleading him to breathe, and Baekhyun shoves his Parallel out of his head and locks the door behind him. He wants to be _alone_.

He doesn’t know how or why, but suddenly he finds himself standing in a tiny courtyard he didn’t even know existed; it looks like an inner garden, flanked by the house from all four directions. There’s a lone tree in the middle of it and some bushes that grew all over the ground and walls over time. Whoever lived in this house must’ve been rich as fuck.

Baekhyun stops to catch his breath, a pretty useless endeavor as it seems like every piece of oxygen he has in his body is being channeled to a series of ugly sobs that tear through his lungs and vocal chords. Fuck Jongdae with his heroism and his god complex and his need to always, _always_ save everyone around him, fuck him-

“Baek,” a voice from behind him says, and Baekhyun whips around to see Jongdae standing there, panting. He looks at Baekhyun and his eyes are full of pain and sorrow as he reaches out to his boyfriend, fingers curling desperately. “Baby, please-”

“Don’t,” Baekhyun warns him, voice shaking dangerously as he takes a step back. “Save it, Jongdae. All of your inspirational mottos and your- your fucking hero’s guilt, _save it_.” he raises a shaking hand to wipe at his eyes, though it doesn’t help- his vision is just as blurry as it was before. “You can’t keep sacrificing yourself for the greater good, can’t keep hurting yourself like this.” he’s sobbing and it’s ugly, but he just can’t stop; he’s _hurting_.

Jongdae takes a few steps forward so the distance between them isn’t so unbearable anymore. “Why not?” he asks defiantly. “I don’t care if I get hurt as long as you’re all safe-”

“ _BECAUSE IT HURTS ME_!” Baekhyun outright screams, finally gathering all that pain and letting it out- it feels fucking _good_ , to see (however blurrily) the shocked expression rise on Jongdae’s face like he just got slapped. “It hurts _me_ to see you like this, Jongdae. I can’t look at it, I can’t stand knowing that you’re in pain and that you’re sticking your neck out for us, I care about you too much to take it.” he doesn’t even know if Jongdae can understand what he’s saying through the sobbing mess he’d turned into, but something must’ve gotten through to him, because he takes those extra few steps that separate them and wraps Baekhyun in his embrace, one hand on his back and the other cradling the back of his head sweetly. Baekhyun buries his face in his boyfriend’s shoulder and claws at the back of his shirt, holding on for dear life as he keeps sobbing uncontrollably. He doesn’t even know what he’s saying anymore, but he’s talking and it helps to ease the pressure on his chest, even if it’s just slightly. 

Jongdae lets him cry it out, stroking his hair and back and pressing kisses to his temple all throughout his breakdown. Baekhyun revels in the feeling of being in his boyfriend’s arms and presses himself even closer as his sobs subside to whimpers and an occasional sniffle. He’s tired, eyelids and limbs feeling like lead and his throat sore. Without him noticing, he’s shifted his entire body weight so he’s practically leaning on Jongdae. He’ll probably be embarrassed about it later, but right now he doesn’t care.

A kiss is pressed to his neck, right behind his ear. “Tired?”

Bless Jongdae for understanding without having Baekhyun say a single word. The light bender nods, a small movement, and closes his eyes. “I feel gross.”

Jongdae chuckles, his voice warm and fond. Baekhyun can feel it vibrating against his chest and presses himself closer, starved for affection and touch after the last twenty four hours. “Let’s put you to bed, babe.”

“Don’t treat me like a fucking baby,” Baekhyun whines, sounding exactly like one. He doesn’t hate the idea of a nap, even though he just woke up a few hours ago. Distantly, he feels Jongdae pick him up and carry him inside. His mind slips in and out of consciousness for a few seconds; the next thing he’s aware of is Jongdae putting him down on a soft mattress, having removed his shoes and pants. An alarm sounds in Baekhyun’s head when Jongdae tucks him in and moves to leave; blindly, he reaches out and manages to snag something that feels like his boyfriend’s jeans. “Stay with me,” he pleads, voice weak and words slurring together. 

His hold on reality weakens fast, but he feels Jongdae slip into bed next to him and wrap his arms around him, pulling him close as their legs tangle together.

“Always,” is the last word Baekhyun registers before his mind slips into darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ok so this isnt the last chapter. sue me
> 
> the introduction of aro!kyungsoo has finally happened! i did my best to clarify that the love he feels for jongdae is purely platonic, but if i offended actual aromantics by implying that u just need the right person to come along for u to feel romantic attraction, pls correct me! as an asexual, the last thing i want is for ppl to feel like theyve been wronged by an allo bc that is Not A Nice Feeling
> 
> [lichtenberg figures are actually a real thing](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lichtenberg_figure). look them up, theyre real cool


	5. pt.5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> warning for fellow ace/sex-repulsed/minors/etc: this chapter contains teeeeeny tiny bits of smut. theyre microscopic and subtle, i think, but theyre still there. be careful! im ace myself and am uncomfortable with writing smut, but i felt like it was due at this point of the story. sorry!

It’s dark outside when he wakes up; Baekhyun knows, because there’s a window on the wall opposite of him. All he can see through it are black skies and some shining silver dots, twinkling merrily. He has no idea how long he’s slept, but it doesn’t feel like enough; his eyelids still feel heavy and his mind works slowly, like his consciousness will slip away at any moment now. There’s something nudging at the back of his mind that he can’t quite put his finger on- it’s like something’s wrong, but only mildly, like the sun is out on a freezing cold day. He tries to focus on it, but he’s too sleepy. Baekhyun sighs and turns over in hopes of falling back asleep, but the minute he does he becomes aware of two things:

1\. Jongdae’s arms are looped securely around his waist.  
and

2\. Jongdae’s eyes are trained on his face.

There’s a moment of awkward silence as Baekhyun tries very hard to swallow the alarmed scream that almost left him. Jongdae smiles at him, amused, and raises a hand to Baekhyun’s cheek, thumb sliding over skin. It feels nice, familiar, and Baekhyun leans into it, welcoming the touch. A part of him almost didn’t expect Jongdae to even be there when he woke up; after what happened yesterday, it would be more than reasonable if Jongdae would want to keep his distance from Baekhyun, but he doesn’t- he’s here, he’s smiling, and he’s looking at Baekhyun like he puts the stars in the sky every night. It puts a lump in his throat that makes it hard to breathe.

“Hey,” Jongdae whispers, voice as gentle as ever. Baekhyun wants to melt into it, but then he remembers everything that’s happened yesterday in full detail and a self-deprecating groan escapes him.

“Sorry for freaking out on you,” he apologizes, feeling genuinely sorry. He no doubt made everyone else worry about him; he’s gonna have to apologize when they all wake up. He checks in his mind for Yixing and shame attacks him when he discovers that his Parallel hasn’t managed to breach the walls he’s put up out of anger yesterday; he obviously tried, but didn’t succeed. Now that he’s in his right mind, it feels weird and unnatural to be alone inside his head, the empty space reserved for Yixing echoing hollowly. He takes down the walls and leaves a gigantic “I’M SORRY” banner for Yixing to find when he wakes up.

Jongdae, however, shakes his head and smiles at him, even planting a soft kiss on his lips that Baekhyun definitely welcomes. “It’s okay, babe. You’ve been through a lot. It’s good that you let it out.”

Baekhyun blinks- he doesn’t get it. “But I yelled at you,” he reminds Jongdae, confused. “And I stormed out on everybody. That’s not okay.” his face burns with the guilt and shame of the memories passing through his mind- now that he thinks about it, his own actions seem out of line, like a kid throwing a temper tantrum. And Jongdae- he’s never screamed at Jongdae like that before.

“Couples fight, Baekhyun, it’s not the end of the world,” Jongdae says, humored and fondly exasperated. He looks so much like home that Baekhyun’s heart aches. “And everyone else understand that this is a rough time for all of us. We’re all tired and stretched thin, something like this was bound to happen. They're not mad at you.” When he sees the uncertain look in Baekhyun’s eyes and the way he chews on his lower lip, he adds, “We understand.”

No. No, it can’t be that easy. Something inside Baekhyun tells him that this can’t be it. He shakes his head, fingers playing with the material of Jongdae’s shirt. “I shouldn’t have yelled at you like that,” he mumbles, not daring to meet Jongdae’s eyes. “I’m sorry.”

There’s a beat of silence in which Baekhyun’s scared he fucked something up, his heartbeats faltering and blood rushing in his ears, but then Jongdae makes a sound almost like a coo and pulls Baekhyun flush against his body, arms looped so tightly around his ribcage Baekhyun’s afraid he’ll break something; he’s surprised to learn that he doesn’t mind if he does as long as Jongdae keeps holding him like this, close enough to feel the thuds of his heart against his chest. Baekhyun sniffs and buries his face in his boyfriend’s neck, pressing his lips to the skin there in a silent apology. Jongdae’s breath is shaky where he can feel it against his ear, hitching and stuttering on its way out.

“Oh, Baekhyun,” Jongdae whispers, voice thick. “My Baekhyun. You never have to apologize to me about anything.”

Baekhyun feels like he’s melting, mind reeling and threatening to explode with the sheer amount of emotions barreling through his body- relief, thankfulness, confusion, guilt, admiration, and love, mostly love. Every inch of him screams closer, wants to press himself against Jongdae until there’s no more space between them and he can’t tell where he ends and Jongdae begins, and it’s overwhelming. His body reacts to his emotions on its own accord, lips parting against Jongdae’s neck and his tongue darting out to lick the skin. The gasp that leaves Jongdae is gratifying, and he does it again. Licks turn into kisses that turn into Baekhyun sucking hickies onto Jongdae’s neck, the lightning bender letting out gasps and moans that light a fire low in Baekhyun’s stomach.

“Thank you,” he breathes when he takes his shirt off.

“I love you,” Jongdae chokes when their hips meet in a spark that leaves them both breathless.

“I love you too,” Baekhyun answers, lips next to Jongdae’s ear as he pushes in with a groan. “More than anything.”

After, when they’re all curled up in each other despite the heat and the sweat on their skin that makes them sticky, Baekhyun looks at the diverging patterns on Jongdae’s skin, the ones that weren’t there a week ago. Some of them are an angry red and some a more sedated shade of purple that settles into the skin nicely; they start somewhere beneath his collarbones and go down his chest, stomach, and arms, fading just above his forearms. Baekhyun runs a finger down a jagged lightning above Jongdae’s heart and frowns.

“Does it hurt?” he asks hesitantly, unsure if he actually wants to hear the answer. What were those things called again? “Those Lich- Lych-”

“Lichtenberg Figures,” Jongdae supplies helpfully, his smile wide when he presses it against Baekhyun’s lips for a second. “It… stings a little.” he admits. “It feels kind of like a warm heat when it happens, and then it stings for a while, and that’s it.” 

Baekhyun hums, struggling to find words to say and coming up blank. It is a relief knowing that Jongdae’s not seriously hurt, but he still worries, naturally. Some of it must show on his face, because Jongdae tilts his chin upwards gently so he’ll look him in the eye, and when he does, the lightning bender’s gaze is soft and reassuring. “My lightning can’t hurt me, Baek,” he says, voice barely above a whisper. “It’s a part of me, just like your light is a part of you. You have to trust me on this, okay?”

He has to roll his eyes at this, because really, when has he not trusted Jongdae? “If you insist,” he answers playfully, moving forward until his nose is rubbing against Jongdae’s and his arms are wrapped around the lightning bender. The laugh that leaves Jongdae is worth maybe waking some of their friends up.

\------

It’s way too bright the next morning, sunshine filtering through the window and landing right on Baekhyun’s face in the rudest wake-up call to ever exist. When he leaves the room with Jongdae Kyungsoo’s waiting just across the hall, smile strangely radiant compared to his usual stony expression. They both return it, though, and when Kyungsoo’s done hugging and kissing Jongdae good morning he hugs Baekhyun as well, much to the light bender’s surprise. Kyungsoo’s arms could crush a whale to death, and when he pulls back Baekhyun’s half sure he cracked a rib.

It all makes sense, though, when Kyungsoo speaks. “Sorry for how I acted towards you the other night,” he apologizes, expression sheepish as he rubs at the back of his neck. “I, uh, realized I might’ve been too imposing.”

It takes a while and some frantic digging through his memories for Baekhyun to even remember what he’s referring to, but when he does, a large smile dawns on his face, and he waves dismissively. “Ah, no, it’s okay, really,” he assures the earthbender, amused. “I really don’t mind.”

Kyungsoo doesn’t look convinced. “It’s just, when it comes to him,” he jabs a thumb in Jongdae’s direction, “I don’t always think clearly.”

A laugh leaves Baekhyun. “Same here.”

The tips of Kyungsoo’s ears are pink. Before he can say anything, Jongdae wraps an arm around each of their shoulders and pulls them close, landing a kiss on each of their cheeks. “Jeez, guys, I’m touched,” he teases them, his signature cat smile on and his eyes turning into happy little slits. 

Kyungsoo elbows him in the side.

When they go downstairs and walk through previously unexplored corridors of the house, decked with wooden floors and an occasional lopsided picture, a tantalizing smell hits Baekhyun’s nose. His mouth waters and his stomach makes an interested sound as he realizes that the last time he ate anything was at Yunnan, a day ago. It feels like a lot longer than a day, though, if the way his stomach’s acting is any indication. “Please tell me this smell is of food I can eat and not some decaying furniture,” he pleads, more to himself than anything, as they round a corner into yet another hallway.

Kyungsoo and Jongdae laugh in that creepy, synched-up way of theirs, earning a scowl from Baekhyun. Kyungsoo shakes his head good-naturedly and stops in front of a scratched white door, opening it to reveal what must be a kitchen; it has all the makings of one, with a dusty dining table surrounded by mismatching chairs that were no doubt confiscated from other rooms in the house, a kitchen counter, cabinets that are missing their doors, and an old fridge that looks like it belongs in the 90’s. 

The magnificent smell Baekhyun caught a whiff of earlier is emanating from the dining table- more specifically, from a banged-up pot that sits on it, containing- lo and behold- something that looks extremely, but _not quite_ , like ramen. Their friends are sitting around the pot, fishing out noodles with cheap wooden chopsticks and dumping them into their mouths unceremoniously. Chanyeol and Sehun are actually sitting _on_ the table, cross-legged as they inhale mouthful after mouthful of noodles. 

It takes some effort, but Baekhyun tears his eyes and mind from the prospect of food in favor of searching for Yixing. He finds his Parallel sitting awkwardly on a long-legged stool, waiting politely for Minseok to withdraw his chopsticks from the pot to make his own advance. The sight of him, so ordinary and familiar, makes Baekhyun’s chest ache. It’s like Yixing is a magnet; before he knows it, his feet carry him to his Parallel’s side, like some reflex. He raises a hand to place on his Parallel’s shoulder, then stops; after he threw Yixing out of his head so crudely last night, he wants to test the waters first, make sure everything’s okay between them. 

So he takes a deep breath and speaks. “Hey, hyung.”

His voice was small enough to be mistaken for a fly passing by, but Parallels are super-tuned to each other- Yixing hears him, and pauses with his chopsticks halfway to his mouth. He turns to look at Baekhyun, expression soft but careful, as he takes tentative steps into Baekhyun’s mind. He looks around, on-guard, like he’s scared he’ll get thrown out again; the feeling of it is _wrong_ , and Baekhyun hesitantly takes him by the mental wrist and draws him in, invites him to look at all the emotions he has to offer to him like an exhibit- guilt, shame, worry, hope that he’ll be forgiven. Yixing looks at all of them and embraces them, showing Baekhyun he understands.

And then he sends Baekhyun one of the greatest feelings one can receive- forgiveness.

When Baekhyun looks at him, the healer smiles at him like he always does and holds his chopsticks up to Baekhyun’s mouth. “Say _ah_ ,” he says playfully, offering the light bender some noodles. Baekhyun raises his eyebrows, checking his Parallel, but Yixing only winks and brings the chopsticks even closer to Baekhyun’s lips, a smile stretching his own.

The noodles taste so good that Baekhyun has to physically hold onto Yixing’s shoulder so he doesn’t fall over from shock; they’re spicy and salty and taste like meat flavoring and everything Baekhyun wants in life. “Oh my god, these are amazing,” he groans after he’s done thoroughly chewing and savouring the flavor of the noodles. He opens his eyes, unaware that he even closed them in the first place. “How do we even have those?”

“Remember yesterday when Kyungsoo-hyung said he found a job at the local gas station?” Jongin asks through a mouthful of broth. “He got them from there. Like, _twenty packs_ of them. _For free_.”

“I love America,” Chanyeol moans appreciatively, spitting out small bits of noodles straight onto poor Junmyeon. “Oops. Sorry, hyung.”

As Junmyeon forlornly cleans his shirt from food and spit, Yixing pulls Baekhyun until he’s sitting in his lap, and hands him his chopsticks. “Eat up, baby boy,” he advises lovingly, patting his Parallel on the back. “Before everything’s gone.”

Looking into the pot, Baekhyun is horrified to learn that that is, indeed, the case- the pot is seriously on its way to becoming empty, with only what looks like a pack of noodles and some broth remaining at the bottom. He immediately begins to stuff his face with food, having been unaware of how actually starving he was. _You okay, hyung?_ he asks Yixing between taking huge bites and fighting Sehun for the last few dehydrated peas. He’d use his mouth, but the stakes are too high right now; besides, isn’t this what their mental connection is for?

Yixing chuckles in his mind. _I’m fine, baby boy. You just worry about eating enough to get through the day._

That, Baekhyun can do. _Okay_ , he agrees happily. Then, because he feels like it needs to be said, he adds, _love you_.

The response is immediate and coupled with a mental bombard of kisses. _Love you too, baby boy._

Baekhyun focuses on nothing but eating from then on, shoving noodles into his mouth and tilting the pot to get what’s left of the broth. He woke up later than everyone else, so they already ate enough, but Sehun looks like he could seriously eat ten more pots of instant ramen if given the opportunity. Considering what he told them of his stay in Edinburgh and his age, Baekhyun isn’t surprised; he’d be an all-consuming beast, too, if he had nothing to live on but things he barely stole for days.

He lets Sehun finish off what’s left once he feels like he’s had enough. The kid deserves it, and he’s always had a soft spot for him, anyway.

They sit in comfortable silence once the pot is empty, just enjoying the fact that they’re all together. From his perch in Yixing’s lap, Baekhyun rakes his eyes over his friends and smiles to himself. They did it. They really did it. They escaped from that awful place and got back together, safe and sound and independent. It might’ve taken them some time, but they’re here. The future looks kind of bright.

So of course, someone has to ruin it.

Namely, Kyungsoo and Jongdae. The two shift uncomfortably where they’ve settled on the counter, Jongdae hugging Kyungsoo’s arm to his chest. They both look apologetic for breaking their moment of peace, but also determined to speak. “Umm, guys,” Kyungsoo starts quietly, immediately receiving everyone’s attention and seeming very uncomfortable with it. Nevertheless, he plows on. “Remember what we told you yesterday?”

“What, that our powers are somehow amplified?” Minseok supplies helpfully, tapping out a random rhythm on Junmyeon’s nape. “I thought that was it.”

Jongdae and Kyungsoo shake their heads, looking extremely grim all of a sudden. “That was the easy part,” they say solemnly. Beneath Baekhyun, Yixing tenses.

“I immediately dislike how _that_ sounds,” Chanyeol announces, voicing all of their thoughts. “Ah, fuck, what is it now?”

Jongdae and Kyungsoo both wince, their expressions showing deep displeasure at what they’re about to say. _Do you know about this?_ Yixing asks, voice hushed even though no one but Baekhyun can hear him.

 _How would I know?_ Baekhyun shoots back, helpless as he looks at his boyfriend and his Parallel fidget on the counter. A terrible feeling pools in his gut, like fog over mountaintops. _Whatever it is, it’s bad._

 _No kidding_ , Yixing replies. His arms tighten around Baekhyun’s waist.

It’s so quiet in the kitchen, you could hear a pin drop. Jongdae and Kyungsoo exchange weary looks, the lightning bender’s fingers tangling with his Parallel’s seemingly without either of them noticing. They take a deep breath, readying themselves. Baekhyun can feel his heart pounding in his throat when they open their mouths and speak together. 

“We think we’re all weapons.”

Baekhyun’s world cracks.

\------

It’s silent for a few good seconds after that, although it’s hard to hear anything anyway through the blood rushing in Baekhyun’s ears. There are black spots dancing in his vision, and he can feel himself swallow hard, throat dry as a bone despite having just eaten. Yixing’s mind reaches out to his, latching onto it, and their shared confusion just makes everything worse, but at least they’re not alone in this. Baekhyun holds onto Yixing like his life will be taken away from him at any second. It sure does feel like it, with how fast his heart is beating.

Finally, someone speaks. “Explain,” Junmyeon demands, voice authoritative and strong with an underlying sense of panic to it. Taking a look around, it seems like everyone is just as shocked as Baekhyun and Yixing- Minseok’s lips are pursed into a thin line, Jongin is looking strangely pale, Chanyeol’s eyes are the size of saucers, and Sehun looks like he might faint. 

The lights flicker. Wind suddenly howls outside. The temperature in the room drops dramatically.

Jongdae clears his throat. “The force field,” he starts nervously, eyes darting over his friends’ faces. “The one we think inhibited our powers at the facility. If it _did_ exist, which is highly likely, it could theoretically do two things.” He holds up two shaky fingers. “One, it could diminish our powers so much, that eventually, over time, they’ll disappear.” Here, he hesitates, licking his lips like he’s afraid of his own words. Next to him, Kyungsoo swallows and squeezes his hand. Jongdae continues, looking tortured. “Two. It could create an explosion effect- when we get out of there and into the world, our powers, after being suppressed for so long, would burst out and consume everything around them.”

“That’s crazy,” Sehun protests weakly, looking like he doesn’t believe his own words.

Kyungsoo and Jongdae throw their hands up. “Is it?” they ask together, voices a tad desperate. 

“Think about it,” Kyungsoo prompts them. “Why did the escape pods take us all over the world? It could be to separate us better, make sure we can’t get back together, sure, but it could also be to maximize the effect of our exploding powers,” he explains, voice getting louder and louder with each word until he’s practically shouting. “Assured global destruction.”

Something about that doesn’t add up. “You make it sound like they _wanted_ us to escape,” Baekhyun says. He can’t help the little incredulous laugh that escapes him. “Why would they want that?”

“Unless it was their goal,” Jongdae says quickly. “Try to remember. When we escaped, who tried to stop us?”

A chill goes down Baekhyun’s spine.

“The red nurses,” Jongin mutters. He sounds like he’s starting to believe it, and if Baekhyun is being completely honest, so is he.

Kyungsoo and Jongdae both snap their fingers and point at Jongin like he just answered the one-million dollar question. “Exactly,” they say together.

“Why not guards?” Kyungsoo asks.

“Or mechanical weapons, _which we know they have_ ,” Jongdae adds.

“Why send their weakest staff members to stop us when they could send a platoon to take us out?” Kyungsoo picks up.

“Why were the escape pods so close to the common area?” Jongdae inquires.

“ _It makes sense_ ,” they say together, crossing their arms over their chests, looking like they just ran a marathon.

Baekhyun sure _feels_ like it. His lungs feel like there isn’t enough air in the _world_ to help him breathe properly. There’s a hollow ringing in his ears that he clearly doesn’t remember having heard before. Even though his feet are on solid ground, it feels like he’s going through his own personal earthquake.

It can’t be. _It can’t be_. They can’t all be sentient, feeling, _living_ weapons and not know it. It just doesn’t seem right. Humans can’t use other human beings as weapons. It’s _wrong_ , it’s _twisted_. There are so many alarm bells ringing in his head that it’s hard to think and process everything properly; Baekhyun shakes his head like he’s trying to get water out of his ears. _This isn’t right_.

And yet… when did Jongdae and Kyungsoo ever lead them wrong? They’re both smart, methodical, careful, calculated. They check every angle before coming to a conclusion. They must’ve thought of this for long enough to drive them both insane. And most often than not, their words turn out to be true.

Which means- Baekhyun closes his eyes- which means they’re right.

It sinks in his stomach like a rock. He’s a weapon. All of them, they’re _all_ weapons, trained and conditioned and released to wreak havoc on the world without them even _knowing_ it. How did that happen? Why them? They lived in a lie and they were never even aware of it, lived their daily lives in a place that groomed them to be inhalators. Baekhyun swallows down bile, feeling his entire body shake and cold sweat on his back. What is this?

“That’s crazy,” Minseok says, repeating Sehun’s words in a hollow voice. “But it makes sense.”

Kyungsoo and Jongdae exchange guilty looks. “We’re sorry.”

“It’s not your fault,” Junmyeon and Chanyeol say at the same time, but while Junmyeon sounds comforting, Chanyeol is forceful, angry.

A thought blinks bright in Yixing’s mind; it springs to the front of his head and makes so much noise that it’s hard to ignore. “But my power is healing,” he says, confused. “You can’t really destroy the world with _that_.”

“Or teleportation,” Jongin adds miserably.

“Or flight,” Chanyeol says quietly, but they all hear him. It sends a pulse of pain through the room; Chanyeol never spoke of Wufan after his death, and they tried to follow suit. Having him bring his dead Parallel up now, of all times, makes it hurt even more.

Jongdae and Kyungsoo both wince, as if Chanyeol swung at them with a dagger. Baekhyun knows what they’re about to say before Kyungsoo even opens his mouth, and it makes him want to throw up with how _wrong_ it is.

“We think,” the earthbender starts painfully, “that they killed off the ones that were useless to them.”

The lights in the kitchen all go off at once. Ice crystals grow on the walls. The wind outside gets even stronger, whipping at the house so hard the walls start to shake. Sehun has a look like death in his eyes, body tense like a puma about to pounce. “You want to tell me,” he starts dangerously, voice deadly quiet, “that they killed _my Zitao_ because they _couldn’t use him_?!”

Baekhyun thinks that Sehun is seriously about to murder Kyungsoo and Jongdae, but for someone who might die at the hands of a friend they both look extremely calm, looking at the airbender level-headedly. “All those whose powers weren’t elemental were of no use to them. Luhan, Zitao, and Wufan were the first to go, yes, but according to that criteria,” Kyungsoo stops. Hesitates. Closes his eyes before completing the sentence, voice tortured like the words physically stab his throat and mouth on the way out. “Yixing, Jongin, and Jongdae were next.”

The room is freezing, but nothing can compare to the ice that wraps around Baekhyun’s heart at that. His heart stops beating. There’s a sound like a continuous scream ringing in his ears, and it takes a while for him to realize that that sound is Yixing’s mind screaming into his, bleeding its raw emotions into his consciousness like a blizzard. His instincts kick in before his rational minds does; before he knows it he’s spinning around in his seat and wrapping his arms around his Parallel, holding the healer’s head to his chest like it’s the most precious thing in the world. It is, on some level- just the thought of being alone inside his mind _forever_ makes Baekhyun weak, makes his limbs shake. A fury arises within him that he didn't know he possessed; a fury at those people who took their lives away and used them like puppets in their own sick game. It licks and eats away at him until there’s nothing left.

 _They’re not taking you away from me_ , he snarls viciously, tightening his hold on his shivering Parallel. _I won’t let them, Yixing, I swear_. His vision is slowly turning white, his light reacting to his emotions and flooding his system.

Yixing’s mind wraps itself around Baekhyun’s, pulsing in its light blue hue. It’s his healing color; good old Yixing, always rational, always thinking and processing everything so neatly. The screaming from before is replaced with a calm hum- the panic is still there, the fear of knowing that he was supposed to die, but they’re subdued now, quieter; he’s compartmentalized them, filed them away for later. Instead there’s quiet reassurance and shaky confidence, slowly rebuilding itself. _It’s okay, baby boy, we’ve escaped. They can’t touch us anymore. You’re mine, and I won’t be taken from you this easily._

Still, despite his steady words, Baekhyun can feel Yixing’s fingers clutch the back of his shirt, grabbing fistfuls of the fabric and bunching it up in his fists. It’s good to know that he’s needed as much as he needs Yixing; slowly, heartbeat by heartbeat, they both calm down, holding onto each other like they’re lost at sea and they’re each other’s lifeline. In a sense, it’s what they are.

 _I can’t-_ even in his thoughts, Baekhyun’s voice cracks. _I can’t live without you, hyung._

Yixing shakes his head, forehead pressed against Baekhyun’s chest and his fingers tightening in his shirt. _You don’t have to, Baekhyun. I’m not going anywhere._

It’s quiet; beyond the borders of their joined minds, nobody has said anything, the group too shocked to utter a single word. The air is tense and frigid- _literally_. There are snowflakes floating in the air of the kitchen, blowing in a gentle breeze that shouldn’t be there. They land on the floor and kitchen counters, collecting in a slowly gathering layer, turning everything white. When Baekhyun exhales it comes out as a dense cloud of fog that dissipates into nothing. It’s dark in the room, the light having been all but abruptly sucked out of it. Baekhyun sighs. It’s time to bring the light back.

Slowly, sunlight filters into the kitchen.

It lands on the snow-covered floor, hits the walls, illuminates his friends’ faces. Chanyeol, Jongin, and Minseok all look stony, like the freezing temperatures in the room actually knocked them into immobility. Sehun looks furious, eyebrows set in an angry line and his teeth chewing on his bottom lip, like he always does when he’s upset; that fury quickly dissolves into deep agony, his hands coming up to hide his face. Junmyeon’s crying silently, hot tears paving tracks in the frost on his face as he leans on Minseok like he physically cannot hold himself anymore.

“It’s too much,” he says quietly, voice scratchy. “It’s just too much.”

Jongin shakes his head slowly, eyes trained on some random spot on the floor, his gaze holding no emotion to it. “They should’ve killed me with him,” he whispers, almost like an aside.

“Please don’t say that,” Yixing begs him, dismay and pain popping in his mind like a gigantic exclamation mark. Baekhyun shivers and leans closer to Yixing, seeking his proximity now more than ever.

Sehun bursts into tears, face still in his hands and his entire body quaking with the force of the sobs that tear through him. They tear from his throat like a roar, like the cries of a wounded animal, like no amount of pain can ever express what he actually feels. The snow that is still falling muffles them a tiny bit, but they still echo in Baekhyun’s chest like a drum, like Sehun is shouting straight into his ears. Beside him, Chanyeol pulls the weeping airbender into his embrace, tucking his head beneath his chin like there’s nothing else he can do.

There really isn’t.

Eventually Sehun’s sobs fade down to sniffles, the youngest having cried himself out to the last bits of his energy. He leans on Chanyeol and blinks his puffy red eyes at them. Baekhyun smiles at him, just a quirk of his lips, but Sehun catches it and smiles back. It’s empty and tired for now, but that’s okay. One day he’ll smile and mean it.

Kyungsoo clears his throat, shuffling awkwardly in his place atop the kitchen counter. He and Jongdae remained perfectly silent throughout the entire ordeal, as if they were afraid to draw fire to themselves, but now they smile hesitantly at their friends. “We know that this is hard,” the earthbender starts quietly, like he’s talking to an injured kitten. “But now that we know what we are, we can control it. We can write our own story.”

“We can’t let them win,” Jongdae adds, looking at his friends with a bright smile, prompting them all to perk up. Out of the corner of his eye, Baekhyun can see Minseok and Junmyeon intertwine their fingers. Jongin sits up a little straighter. There are subtle flames in Chanyeol’s eyes. Yixing’s arms squeeze around Baekhyun’s waist.

The room gets a little warmer.

Kyungsoo and Jongdae smile at each other like excited children and turn to their friends, hands clasped tightly together. “This is the dawning of the rest of our lives,” they announce together, voices strong and sure.

Baekhyun catches Jongdae’s eyes and smiles wider than he ever remembers smiling. Jongdae returns it and laughs a little, sending a flutter of something warm in Baekhyun’s chest. Nothing, he decides, can go truly wrong as long as Jongdae’s smiling at him like this; that small flutter turns into a pool of warmth that seeps into his entire body. It feels like hope.

It really is.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> is this the end of this au? nope! i still have their escape story and a sequel (oh boy) planned, so strap in, folks. i cant tell for sure when theyre gonna come out and in what order tho, bc im starting senior year of highschool in two weeks, which surely means that i am going to DIE lmao rip
> 
> for those of u who are curious as to how i came up with the parallels- watch the mama mvs. theyre all there.
> 
> thank u for reading, commenting, bookmarking, and leaving kudos on this story. i am forever grateful ♥
> 
>  yes im jongdae biased. shocking i know
> 
> ~~my only consolation is that death draws nearer with every single day~~


End file.
